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 | Hungarian Baja: Beloved city of Gyor will be the host of FIA World Cup Baja.
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The year 2011 is again a significant milestone in the life of the "Hungarian Baja". Back in 2004, when we organised the event for the first time, only a few of us thought that in some years, the most prestigious race of the Hungarian cross-country will get in to the top flight of the world. But it is in the top flight now, because this year it became an event of the FIA World Cup series.
The countdown has already started, in more than a month the event will begun, and drivers will arrive not only from the neighbouring countries, but the organisers can welcome some special guests, some really big, famous teams in Gyor. This year Gyor will host the event, thanks to the hospitality of the town and the ETO Park.
"As the event closes in, we are busy in organising this year event. Both the organisers and also the competitors" said Organiser Zoli Garamvölgyi. "I think it is the best time to look back, how was the first seven events, and to call back the past a bit statistically."
The Hungarian Baja was organised in 2004 for the first time with a HQ in Tihany, in 2005 with a HQ in Veszprém, in 2006-2007-2008 with a HQ in Balatonfüred, in 2009 with a HQ in Jutaspuszta and in 2010 with a HQ in Dabas. There are only two competitors who participated in all the events: Two Hungarian drivers, Zsolt Murczin and Imre Varga.
The longest special stage in Hungarian Baja was 240,72 kms long, it was in 2005, which was a really special stage not only in Hungary, but in the history of the European cross-country. During the history of the Baja, drivers from 23 countries were participated. Only Jaroslav Katrinak (moto) and Josef Machacek (quad) could win in two consecutive years. However, none of the car drivers could win two times.
The Hungarian Baja is glad to host the trucks from the very beginning, similarly as this year. Till this time, 15 competitors participated with 8 type of trucks, Miki Kovács was the one who participated in most times (4x) whith his Scania, he showed how the giant moves in the terrain.
In 2008, FIA Baja Cup winner Nasser Al-Attiyah and Tina Thörner won the Hungarian Baja with a X-raid BMW X3CC, and in two occasions Portugues competitors won the event in T2 category, in 2008 Rui Sousa and Carlos Silva, and in 2010 Nuno Matos and Filipe Serra won the T2 Cup with the Isuzu D-Max pickup.
The most taut fight was the inbound of 2009, where Miroslav Zapletal and Tomas Ourednicek arrived in the third place after László Palik and Gábor Darázsi, and won the Hungarian Championship with only a half point. That is all about statistics.
The organizer of the HunGarian Baja Zoli Garamvölgyi is continuously working on the World Cup event of 2011 (and it is not an overstatement). It is not a secret, that he promises lot of surpirses - just like in almost all the years - which promises he wants to realise as well.
2011/07/20 | 17:19 CET | ARTICLE: MR/SY/KONYA/GARAMVOELGYI
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