Appearing in the French Gravel Rally Championship in 2023, the Rallye Terre d’Aléria quickly wowed competitors with its spectacular roads and Mediterranean backdrop. For the third consecutive year, the Isle of Beauty will provide a superb opportunity for the Clio Trophy France Terre crews to shine.

The first winner of the year, Mika Rasoamaromaka, controlled the proceedings from the start of the action in the Causses. The Fun Meca Sport driver heads to Aléria, determined to repeat his success and seek revenge as he was in contention for the win last year in Corsica before making a mistake in the final kilometres. The Madagascan will, however, face stiff competition from a field determined to reverse the early trends seen at Capdenac.

Florian Bouchonneau, runner-up on his return to competition, will chase again a maiden win in Corsica, where he scored a class podium with the official Clio Rally4 in 2023. Other hopefuls are keen to make their presence felt at the sharp end. Third in the Causses, Bastien Bergounhe will look to get back to his winning ways despite his lack of experience on Corsican gravel. Meanwhile, Anaël Cayla will aim to confirm his status as the revelation of the early season on roads where he set several class best times two years ago.

Thomas Eustaquio and Jean Lavigne will also rely on their knowledge of the roads to get closer to the top. Simon Esteban and Charles Charrier will do the same to start climbing the general classification, as will several Juniors eager to get back into contention for the official programme. Among them are Anthony Rovina, determined to excel on home turf after his momentum was halted in the Causses, and Benjamin Rico, whose consistency could be an asset on a course that puts both crews and machines to the test. After getting a feel for the trophy in the Lot and Aveyron, Alexandre Villiod, Lény Cols, and Joris Gres will try to step up their game and spring a surprise.

Ludovic De Luca, leader of the Gentlemen category and fifth last year in Corsica has his sights set on a podium result. Alexandre Gransagne and Christophe Truchet will also target the top spots in this rally, where they were unlucky a year ago. Like them, Alexandre Brossy will count on his experience at Aléria, unlike Nicolas Hebrard, who continues to learn the intricacies of gravel. Lastly, Ludovic Casciani will return to the service park to launch his new campaign in a round where he finished sixth in 2024.

In parallel, seven Clio Rally3 cars will battle in Corsica, including the official car entrusted to Matteo Chatillon and Maxence Cornuau. 2023 Clio Trophy France Terre best Juniors and 2024 WRC3 runners-up, they will return to the roads where they impressed last year by finishing fourth overall. The ARL Sport crew will use the event to contribute to the ongoing development of the Clio Rally3.

The third Rallye Terre d’Aléria begins on Thursday with the shakedown and the traditional administrative and technical scrutineering. On Friday, competitors will tackle two special stages (Champ de Tir and Les Lunaries) twice before facing three timed sectors (Pianiccia – Domaine de la Taste, Château de Pianiccia – Voncon and L’Écurie) twice on Saturday. The route will cover 132.56 timed kilometres over a total distance of 259.43 km. In addition to the points awarded at the finish, up to five "Jean Ragnotti Performer" points will be up for grabs for the five fastest drivers over the ten special stages.

Entry list
#34 Mika Rasoamaromaka – Mélissa Declerck (J)
#35 Florian Bouchonneau – Jeanne Rey (J)
#36 Anaël Cayla – Rémi Nolorgues (J)
#37 Bastien Bergounhe – Audrey Nesta (J)
#38 Thomas Eustaquio – Hugo Olivier (J)
#39 Jean Lavigne – Arnaud Cubizolles (J)
#40 Alexandre Gransagne – Loïc Maurel
#41 Anthony Rovina – Tony Barichella (J)
#42 Benjamin Rico – Hugo Rossi (J)
#43 Ludovic De Luca – José Boyer (G)
#44 Ludovic Casciani Raphaël Angelou
#45 Alexandre Villiod – Maëlle Casays (J)
#46 Christophe Truchet – Barbara Truchet
#47 Lény Cols – Pascal Lopes (J)
#48 Nicolas Hebrard – Bastien Dumas
#49 Alexandre Brossy – Jean-Marc Laviale
#50 Joris Gres – Léa Milon (J)
#51 Simon Esteban – Jean-François Orts (J)
#52 Romain Sagnes – Frédéric Vincent
#53 Gaël Bertrand – Fabien Adenot
#54 Charles Charrier – Valentin Suchet (J)