Success for Kopecký on Czech rally

Jan Kopecký took time out of his Intercontinental Rally Challenge title bid by contesting the opening round of the Czech International Rally Championship last weekend – and promptly won by a margin of 32 seconds.

Driving a Škoda Motorsport Fabia Super 2000 in retro livery as part of the company’s 110th anniversary of motorsport participation, Kopecký and co-driver Petr Starý beat Roman Kresta, in a privateer Fabia, and Pavel Valoušek, who finished third overall on Barum Czech Rally Zlín last season, and has switched to a Peugeot 207 Super 2000 for 2011.

After successfully completing the Wallachia Rally’s 10 special stages, which covered a competitive distance of 152 kilometres, Kopecký said: “I wish to thank the whole team for preparing the car excellently for the pre-race test in Wallachia and then for the entire race - everything worked absolutely perfectly. For both me and Petr, this victory is the best possible motivation for the races to come this year.”

Of his Fabia’s retro design, a throwback to the colour scheme used by Škoda in the 1970s, Kopecký said: “Personally, I like the car’s design very much and I think that it has been a great way of making our appearance here even more attractive.”