DUE SOUTH FROM FEZ
Fez, in northern Morocco, is set to host the start of the Rallye du Maroc for the fourth time. Three days of scrutineering and private tests will give way to an 18 km prologue just outside the capital cultural of the Kingdom on 12 October.
In the wee hours of 13 October, after four days in Fez, the W2RC caravan will head due south for a Saudi-style warm-up concocted by the sporting coach David Castera !
The 780 km stage would not feel out of place in the Dakar next January. After a 276 km road section towards the eastern border of the country, a 300 km special in the southern reaches will explore the wild landscapes of the Rekkam Plateau. Once that is out of the way, another road section will take the field 203 km west to the race bivouac, where it will spend the rest of the rally in the heights above Erfoud.
FOUR LOOPS STARTING IN ERFOUD AND THREE VISITS TO MERZOUGA
Specials (1,130 km) will make up the lion's share of the remaining four stages, held as loops around an XXL bivouac, while road sections will be reduced to the bare minimum (277 km, amounting to less than 20% of the four loops).
The timed sections of the three middle stages will also hover around the 300 km mark. Dune-surfing in the neighbouring area of Merzouga will shake things up between one stage and the next. This variety has been the calling card of the Rallye du Maroc since 2018 (see the quote from David Castera).
As usual, only the final stage will be shorter to make time for the coronation of the winners of the race and the 2025 world champions.
Yet it would be foolish to underestimate it, with 215 km of specials plus a 33 km Power Selective Section for FIA entrants (see Have you heard about the Power Selective Section?). The results could be up in the air until the finish in the heart of the bivouac.
Quote: David Castera, Director of the Rallye du Maroc:
"The Rallye du Maroc holds a special place in the W2RC calendar. It has a double facet, as the world championship titles are often decided here and, at the same time, entrants lay the groundwork for the showpiece event of the following year. Transfers and new vehicle debuts are also common. Like every year, we take this double dimension into account when charting out the rally. Planned changes to the Dakar are put to the test and competitors face wildly different courses every day. This time round, we'll have dunes in the three middle stages, fast, winding and sometimes hard-to-see tracks in stages 1 and 4, and navigation challenges every day. All these ingredients will be found in the Dakar next January. The stages are very well rounded."
Have you heard about the Power Selective Section?
Drawing inspiration from the WRC, the FIA decided to add a Power Selective Section to each W2RC round starting in 2026. The three fastest crews in this short timed section at the tail end of the race will get bonus points (3, 2 and 1) for the championship ranking.
In 2025, organisers have been given discretion to try it out ahead of its general implementation across the series next season. The Rallye du Maroc, always at the cutting edge of innovation, pounced on the opportunity!
