Rallye Automobile Monte Carlo is the oldest event in the FIA World Rally Championship calendar and the longest running event in all rally sport. In 2008 it celebrated its 76th anniversary.
The event is famous for its narrow asphalt roads and a tricky mix of weather and road conditions. Cold temperatures in the mountains mean patches of ice and snow are never far away and with tyre choices made sometimes hours before stages are run, drivers who can tackle dry asphalt and ice on the same rubber have the upper hand. Experience counts here, and drivers with a good understanding of the specialist conditions can be a serious threat to the established WRC stars.
The rally name is something of a misnomer because very little of the event is actually based in Monte Carlo. While it ends with a spectacular Superspecial stage on part of Monaco's Formula 1 circuit, the majority of the rally is based hundreds of kilometers away in the Vercors and Ardeche regions of France.
Since 2007 the rally has been based in the city of Valence, a convenient location right in the heart of the twisty mountain roads that characterize the event. The event follows a unique itinerary; starting on Thursday evening with stages run in darkness, it remains based in Valence for Friday and Saturday, before the whole service area re-locates to Monaco - enabling drivers to tackle the legendary snowy roads of the Turini region in the Alpes Maritimes on the final day. As a result, the Monte has become the only four-day rally in the WRC.
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