The 43-year-old Czech veteran has been proving this weekend that age is just a number. Kopecky has already triumphed ten times at the Barum Rally, held around the city of Zlín, and now he is just three stages away from claiming his 11th win.
On Sunday morning, Kopecky stretched his advantage further during the opening loop of three stages. On the third test of the day, the Skoda driver set a commanding fastest time, pushing right to the limit.
“I was on the maximum. Of course there are some corners where I could go a bit faster.”
“In one of those I was a bit too fast going sideways to the ditch, but luckily nothing was there,” Kopecky reflected.
Kopecky currently leads the rally by 11.6 seconds ahead of Jon Armstrong. Andrea Mabellini, who is fighting for this year’s European championship, holds third place, 21.4 seconds behind the leader.
Championship leader Mikolaj Marczyk has been unable to match the front-runners’ pace on the Czech asphalt. He sits seventh overall, more than a minute off the lead.
Three stages remain at the Czech ERC round, with the event set to finish on Sunday evening.
Barum Czech Rally Zlín standings after SS10/13:
| POS | Driver | Car | Time |
| 1. | Jan Kopecky | Skoda | 1:32:59.7 |
| 2. | Jon Armstrong | Ford | +11.6 |
| 3. | Andrea Mabellini | Skoda | +21.4 |
| 4. | Simon Wagner | Hyundai | +31.3 |
| 5. | Filip Mares | Toyota | +50.0 |
| 6. | Erik Cais | Hyundai | +59.6 |
| 7. | Mikolaj Marczyk | Skoda | +1:06.6 |
| 8. | Adam Brezik | Skoda | +1:07.0 |
