Russian rally 2026: a season that went down in history
The sports season of 2026 in the Russian rally is officially over, leaving a bright mark in the history of domestic motorsport. This year has been really intense and exciting. Competitions were held in 11 regions and different time zones: from Karelia to the Far East: Karelia, Pskov, Novgorod, Tatarstan, Yaroslavl, Karachay-Cherkessia, Krasnodar Territory, Perm Territory, Sverdlovsk Region, Tyumen Region and even Khabarovsk Territory. Only 19 competitions in the status of the Championship and the Cup of Russia - the top series for the Rally of Russia.
In the calendar of the Rally of Russia appeared three completely new locations: Almetyevsk, Tyumen and Khabarovsk. Races in Karelia and the Caucasus (Karachay-Cherkessia) were held on previously unexplored tracks. The Krasnodar region was pleased with the return to the calendar of the stage in Abrau-Durso, which passed along the legendary roads that once claimed a place in the WRC world championship. The two main rally series of the country gave fans an intense fight for every kilometer and every second. The fate of the championship titles in all competitions was decided at the very last stages of the season, both in the Tatneft Championship and in the Tatneft Cup of Russia.
And if in the final stage of the championship, the leaders of the absolute standings Klim Gavrilov and Denis Rostilov came with a small, but still a difference of 12 credit points (if you can earn 60 for the victory), then before the final Tatneft Cup of Russia, in Almetyevsk, two leaders of the Cup, Andrei Zhigunov and Ruslan Gyukhev, came in general with an absolutely equal position in the standings - 228 points each of them. And this despite the fact that in the cup series at the final, double points were awarded (120 for winning the absolute standings and 100 for winning in other standings). In the absolute standings of Tatneft championship of Russia, the victory in the season was won by the crew of Klim Gavrilov (Moscow) and Kirill Yenikeev (St. Petersburg) at the Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo, and the owner of Tatneft Cup of Russia in the absolute standings was the crew from Moscow - Andrei Zhigunov and Alexey Aksakov at the Toyota GR Yaris Rally2. In total, more than 300 athletes (pilots and navigators) took part in the Tatneft Championship and Cup of Russia competitions this season. These are 150 crews representing 37 regions of Russia, Belarus and even Italy.
All competitions of this season were organized by ASMG and were held with the support of the title partner – Tatneft, partners of Rally Russia, with the support of Suprotek, which provided prizes for each competition. From the track of each rally on the Internet, on the accounts of the ASMG Rally of Russia and the official website of the Rally of Russia, announcements, news, videos and reviews of the competition were constantly published. From the key points of each rally, live broadcasts were conducted, and large video reviews were posted on the TV channels “MATC! Country”, “Auto Plus”, the platforms “Start”, “Vju” and “Grigol Sport” with a multi-million total audience.
The point in the sports season of 2026 will be put on November 20 in Moscow, when more than 40 of the country's best rallists will rise to the stage of the Gala Rally Party award ceremony to receive deserved awards for the Tatneft Championship and the Russian Cup. It will be a big celebration for the entire rally community. But now we can say that it was one of the best sports seasons in the history of the Russian rally. And the preparations for the new season, I want to believe that the even more interesting season of 2027 is already underway.
See you at the Russian Rally 2027!
