“Silk Road” international rally raid begins in Astrakhan

The 2022 Silk Road International Rally will start in Astrakhan and will cross the European side of Russia in ten days. The competitive part of the “Silk Road” rally raid will start from July 7-16 in the center of Astrakhan and end in Moscow “Luzhniki”.

In 2021, the organizers of the race were faced with the problem of the coronavirus pandemic, in which an epidemic of bubonic plague also overlapped, making it necessary to urgently change the course and cancel the Mongolian part of the rally raid. In order to protect ourselves from such force majeure, it was decided that the next edition of the Silk Road will be held only on the territory of the Russian Federation, but this will not in the least affect the duration of the race or the diversity. trails and natural areas.

For the first time in the history of rally raids, the competition will be held on the territory of Dagestan and the Chechen Republic.

Although the Russian sport is currently in isolation, 80 teams from 20 countries of the world took part in the race. This geography was greatly facilitated by a new category – the Grand Tour “On the Paths of Peter”, which coincided with the celebration of the 350th anniversary of the birth of Emperor Peter I.

“Another important step in the long-term history of the project that left its mark on our country,” said Oleg Matytsin, Minister of Sports of the Russian Federation, “The route will pass through several regions and some will pass. It will be the first time to host a sporting event of this size. increase, as well as the development of tourism. In this way, Russians will discover the beauty of our nature and our cities, and learn a lot about our country. It is no coincidence that the rally coincided with the 350th anniversary of the birth of Emperor Peter I.”

The total rally distance will be 4464 kilometers, of which 2786 will be in high-speed segments. In total, riders will pass 10 stages, passing through Astrakhan, Grozny, Elista, Volgograd, Lipetsk and Moscow. Among the participants, titled racers such as KAMAZ-master, MAZ-SPORTavto, GAZ Reid Sport and Vladimir Vasilyev, Sergey Karyakin, Anastasia Nifontova, Denis Krotov and others will start. In addition, former Formula 1 driver Nikita Mazepin, who is in the category of off-road vehicles, will try himself in rally raids for the first time.

Mazepin said, “The main goal is to enjoy these ten days. If you enjoy what you do, I think the rest will come. I’ve been racing for 18 years, I’ve always lived by this rule. You get slow speed behind the wheel because when you love something, you concentrate more. You drive a special stage at your own pace. , the final time will suit you well, but they come with results”.