With three wins and two other podium results in the five events contested within the Tarmac French Rally Championship, Romain Di Fante has locked up the Clio Trophy France Asphalte title and the top spot in the Junior category, which is synonymous with an official Clio Rallly4 programme in 2022.

However, Romain Di Fante will not be resting on his laurels in the Cévennes, where he will defend his leadership of the French two-wheel-drive rally championship against rivals from the superior categories and also be keen to help his team win the crown to continue their joint adventure with Clio Rally4 next year.

Naudon Rallye Services currently has a 20-point lead over Europe Location and both squads will field three crews eligible for teams points in this final event of the year. Romain Di Fante will be supported by Florian Bernardi and Karl Pinheiro while Styve Juif, Thomas Chauffray and Guillaume Canivenq will be facing them.

The fight will be even more intense as several of these drivers will be battling for second place in the Clio Trophy France Asphalte. Although Styve Juif has a slight advantage, only the five best results of the season will be counted to establish the season-ending general classification... A rule subtlety that could see Thomas Chauffray, Benjamin Stirling or Romain Fostier get the upper hand in this final round!

The battle for the Jean Ragnotti Power Stage will be just as lively as Romain Di Fante, Styve Juif, Thomas Chauffray and Romain Fostier can all claim the honorary title in this classification. In addition to the competitors already mentioned, Jérémy Sarhy, Tom Rensonnet, Patrick Magnou, Valentin Ascenzi and Julien Anthérieu will also be more motivated than ever to conclude their campaign on a high note.

In the Gentlemen’s category, Dominique Patenotte will try to use Richard Paget’s absence to wrest away first place, but he can’t afford to make any mistake as he will start three points behind his rival. In the Female category, Margot Dupuy is sure to finish the season in first place as her main rival Sarah Filipe will be present in the Cévennes, but as Karl Pinheiro’s co-driver. However, the leader is eager to finish in style with a good performance in the general classification in addition to a final victory versus Karine Hebrard.

The latter will not be the only trophy newcomer as Joël do Rego and Jean-Pierre Lejeune, both well known in the French Rally Cup, as well as Olivier Reilhan will also make their first appearance of the year and will therefore be ineligible for points.

Like the Clio Trophy France Asphalte, the Challenge Philippe Bugalski will conclude in the Cévennes. Thomas Anacleto, who has already wrapped up the title, will let Pierre Loustalniau and Stéphane Ciaramitaro fight for victory in their respective Clio S1600s. Meanwhile, two Clio Rally4 will be at the start with Anthony Fotia and Boris Carminati.

Following the technical and administrative checks on Thursday, the Critérium des Cévennes will start Friday with two identical loops of three stages separated by a service break. On Saturday, the last leg of the season will see the crews face the same programme with three new timed sectors to be run twice. The daunting Col du Pas - Col de Bès test (SS8, 23.3km) will host the Jean Ragnotti Power Stage offering bonus points to the ten fastest competitors. The forecasted Cevennes weather should make the challenge even harder. The 12 stages will total 192.8 kilometers of action on a 777km itinerary.

Entry lists

Clio Trophy France Asphalte
#43 Romain Di Fante - Patrick Chiappe (J)
#44 Styve Juif - Maxime Biegalke (J)
#45 Benjamin Stirling - Florence Wehrey (J)
#46 Romain Fostier - Ophelie Abchiche
#47 Thomas Chauffray - Pauline Chauffray
#48 Guillaume Canivenq - Bastien Dumas
#49 Jeremy Sarhy – Alexis Maillefert (J)
#50 Tom Rensonnet - Renaud Herman (J)
#51 Florian Bernardi – Xavier Castex
#52 Karl Pinheiro - Sarah Filipe (J)
#53 Patrick Magnou - Anthony Vilanova
#54 Valentin Ascenzi – Julien Tramaloni (J)
#55 Julien Anthérieu – Valérie Anthérieu (J)
#56 Margot Dupuy – Clio Chambelland (F)
#57 Joël do Rego – Justin Ladet
#58 Dominique Patenotte – Romain Gandre (G)
#59 Karine Hebrard – Sophie Siardana (F)
#60 Jean-Pierre Lejeune – Genevieve Arnavielhe (G)
#61 Olivier Reilhan – Florent Reilhan (G)

Challenge Philippe Bugalski
#62 Pierre Loustalniau – Benoît Catterini
#63 Stéphane Ciaramitaro – Stéphane Maille

(J): Junior
(G): Gentlemen
(F): Female