Is the Fortress Returning to Its Former Glory?

Bursa, once known as the "fortress of motorsport", is experiencing a great deal of activity ahead of the 2016 season. The election of Bursa native Serkan Yazıcı as TOSFED President after the TOSFED Extraordinary General Assembly seems to have brought a revival in motorsport in his home city too. While the officials of Bursa Otomobil Sporları Kulübü (BOSSEK) continue preparations for the rallycross, hill climb and rally they will organise this season, there is also a great deal of movement on the competitor side. This raises the question: "Is the Fortress Returning to Its Former Glory?"...

12 CREWS TO FOLLOW THE RALLY SEASON

With only a few days to go before Aegean Rally, the opening round of the Turkish Rally Championship, the crews' plans are also becoming clear. Ahmet Burkay-Bilge Ayan, who contested the Aegean, Yeşil Bursa and Kocaeli rallies last season after a long break, will follow the 2016 Turkish Rally Championship in a Citroen DS3 R3T for the newly formed BC Vision Motorsport team. One of the biggest surprises of the new season is that Tansel Üründül will return to rallying in a Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX after a gap of around 8 years...
Emrah Ali Başo, the 2015 TOSFED Rally Cup Category 1 winner, who has moved from a Fiat Palio to the wheel of a Ford Fiesta R1, is preparing to follow the Turkish Rally Championship this season, with an experienced name, Gürkal Menderes, in the co-driver's seat. İsmet Toktaş, who stepped into rallying last season after circuit racing and hill climbs, is also among the drivers who will try their luck in Class 4 in a Ford Fiesta R2 alongside Kaan Özşenler. The Hakan Ertarman-Yunus Emre Bol crew, two-time TOSFED Rally Cup Category 3 winners, are also among the crews who will follow the Turkish Rally Championship with a Renault Clio Ragnotti renewed through a pre-season overhaul, aiming for the Class 3 title. The Burak Başlık-Bahadır Özcan crew, who will follow the championship in a similar car, will also line up for the Class 3 title, looking to continue their rising run of results this season.

Five crews will also try their luck in Class 3 with the Ford Fiesta ST... Cem Alakoç-Yusuf Çelik, who started competing last season and drew attention with fast driving, Onur Çelikyay-Uğur Çelikyay, who also began competing last season in a Fiat Palio, Tarık Gökçen-Efe Ersoy, another young crew moving from a Palio to an ST, Melih Evranlı-Deniz Evranlı, who drew attention last season with fast stage times, and Semih Erkal, whose co-driver has yet to be confirmed, are among the crews who will represent Bursa in the rally. In the historic rally classification, Yılmaz Köprücü, who is preparing an Opel Ascona D, will follow the season, while Orhan Zümrüt with an Opel Ascona 200 and İbrahim Öztürk with a BMW 1502 will take the wheel in some rallies.

INTEREST IN OTHER DISCIPLINES TOO
The activity in rallying is reflected in the other disciplines too.... In rallycross and hill climb, Yiğit Yalçın, Osman Karaosman, Serdar Yalçın and Engin Apaydın are joining names who follow rallying such as Burak Başlık, Semih Erkal, Onur Çelikyay and İsmet Toktaş, while the Team Mobil 1, Teleferik Offroad and Yeşil Bursa teams, who achieved successful results in the 2015 season in the Trial championship, will continue their fight in the new season too...