Beppo Harrach – three times RSSD winner

Winner of the first ever held RSSD event in 2010. which was driven in true snowy conditions was multiple Croatian rally champion, Juraj Šebalj in his Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX. Winner of our rally in 2011. and 2012. was local driver Ivan Goran Čibej driving his Subaru Impreza STI and rented Škoda Octavia WRC. It was a big, but powerful and still competitive rally package. But that all changed with arrival of Beppo Harrach from Austria. Firstly, one of the fastest Austrian drivers came to our event with his well known Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX R4.

He took a victory already on his first visit to Rally Show Santa Domenica. When few weeks later he placed his order for a brand new Ford Fiesta R5, we knew that our rally show is soon about to get some of the most advanced rally cars of current time.

Except from WRC cars that are mostly meant only for World Rally Championship, R5 class is getting a wide recognition in European regional and national series. Cars have powerful 1.6 turbo engines with 300 HP, four-wheel drive, good handling and relatively low costs. M-Sport from England, famous company that take care of Ford’s rally programme since 1997, developed the first R5 car.

Their fiesta R5 was immediately a big hit. There are now around 130 fiesta R5 cars driving around different countries. With Harrach behind the steering wheel, it was also the fastest car on last two Rally Show`s Santa Domenica.

Beppo Harrach is spectacular and well known Austrian rally driver. In 2011. he took his first overall Austrian Rally Championship title after eight year supremacy of multiple champion, Raimund Baumschlager.

In 2000. driving Audi 90 Quattro, Harrach won Rookie of the year award in the Austrian Rally Championship and won Austrian Rally Challenge. In 2002 he entered Production World Rally Championship in a Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VI while in 2003. he debuted in the Junior World Rally Championship driving a Ford Puma S1600. Interestingly, Croatian rally star Juraj Šebalj entered Junior WRC competition same year in a Renault Clio S1600.