The Rally Paraguay is scheduled for September next year. The logistics have been carefully planned, as both the Paraguay and Chile WRC rounds will be back-to-back on the calendar.
This means that the WRC caravan will only need to make one trip to South America, allowing them to compete in two events in one go.
However, Paraguay will see action this September. The city of Encarnación will host a national rally, which will serve as a test event for the Paraguayan WRC round.
The Rally del Paraguay will take place just before this year’s Rally Chile, allowing WRC teams and officials to visit the site and get a first taste of next year’s new event.
“I’m really looking forward to the WRC people visiting us,” Omar Avila, Event CEO of the Rally Paraguay, told Dirtfish.
“From the beginning of this WRC project, I worked with one of the country’s best-known drivers, Gustavo Saba, who is also a stakeholder in the company promoting the national series. Gustavo has been very supportive, and we made a good agreement with the national championship to secure round number five,” Avila praised.
The Paraguay test event will be held from September 19-21, just before the Rally Chile.
“We wanted it to be held from September 19-21 because it’s just a few days before Rally Chile. People coming from the FIA, WRC Promoter, the teams, and all other stakeholders can visit Paraguay on their way to Concepción for Rally Chile. It’s one trip to South America instead of two,” Avila explained.
According to Avila, the event will already be run as if it were a WRC round.
“The national event normally runs around 120 kilometers, we aimed a bit higher with a route of 10 stages and 149 kilometers,” Avila said.
“We will present two stages, one on Friday and one on Saturday, to WRC Promoter and the FIA, which will be run to full WRC specifications.”
The route will be very similar to what’s planned for next year’s WRC event.
“Then we move to Friday: three stages repeated, and those three are probably going to be the same roads used on Friday in 2025,” Avila added.
The rally will end early on Saturday, and this too has been carefully considered.
“The final stage will start at 1:18 PM, so we can be finished by around 2:30 in the afternoon on Saturday. That gives us the opportunity for a good debrief and, crucially, it gives people time to travel to the capital, Asunción, and on to Chile, where they will have ample time to prepare for the next WRC round,” Avila explained.
The Rally Paraguay has received support from the highest level, with Paraguayan President Santiago Pena backing the event from the start.
“The President has remained an incredibly loyal supporter of what we’re doing. Yes, he’s a fan of the sport, but much more importantly, he can see the opportunity the WRC brings to his country,” Avila acknowledged.
