It’s that time of year again: get ready for the Cyprus Rally 2007

The annual highlight on the motorsport calendar, the 2007 Cyprus Rally, kicks off next weekend with a ceremonial start in the coastal town of Limassol.

The rally, that is part of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) will cover nine gravel stages on Saturday and Sunday before finishing in Limassol on Sunday afternoon.

Rally teams have entered from Qatar, the UAE, Jordan, Greece, the UK, Lebanon and Cyprus heading for four special stages on Saturday, beginning with the Xyliatos test and five on Sunday, culminating with the Panagia stage and the ceremonial finish.

In a total route of 878.72 km, there will be 239.66 km of special stages, mostly gravel and narrow dirt roads. The longest special stage will be the 32.42 km of the Anadiou stage, which will run twice on Sunday. The shortest is the fifth 11.87 km Kato Amaiantos special stage on Sunday morning.

This year’s Cyprus Rally will also include an official round of the 2007 FIA Historic Rally Championship.

The Historic Cyprus Rally will run first in the day, ahead of the Cyprus Rally, and competitors will tackle a total of five Special Stages (3 on Day 1 and 2 on Day 2), as opposed to the nine stages of the Cyprus Rally. Historic Rally entrants will also compete under older regulations, which allow for greater flexibility in servicing, for example.

Cyprus is hosting two rounds of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship in 2007. The Troodos Rally, round 3 of this year’s MERC, was held earlier this year and ended with a clear victory for Qatar’s Nasser Al Attiyah, the defending FIA Middle East and PWRC Champion, and co-driver Chris Patterson.