Stratieva needs new backing to continue rally career

Ekaterina Stratieva has admitted that she needs to land a new big sponsor in order to continue in competition next season after she completed her five-round Intercontinental Rally Challenge campaign on the Mabanol Sliven Rally last week.

Stratieva, Bulgaria’s leading female driver, impressed on several IRC 2WD Cup appearances alongside Romanian co-driver Carmen Poenaru. In order to build on her experience by competing again in 2013 she needs to find new funding.

“We have to work hard now because for 2013 my big sponsor, my family, cannot help me and we must find alone the budget,” said Stratieva. “It was a pleasure to work with all the professional and friendly people from Eurosport and the IRC. We want to make the maximum programme possible for 2013 and fingers crossed we will be there.”

Of her time in the IRC in 2012, Stratieva added: “I visit new countries, meet with new colleagues and competed on real stages. Some of them were so hard for us but all the time we try to fight and not to be the only goes in a rally car.”