The "Carabinieri" Alexander Linz and Michaela Beznaus failed to win their third title in a row - but victory at the 35th Kitzbühel Alpine Rally went to Austria once again. Georg Geyer and Günter Lippitsch from Vienna in a Porsche 356 Speedster (1958) took their first overall Alpine Rally victory after 586 kilometers over three stages and 33 special stages.
As in the previous year, Johann Mazzucato and Sebastian Klackl (Jaguar XK 140 FHC, 1955), also from Vienna, took second place in the Sport Trophy/Hourglass class (the premier class of the Alpine Rally without electronic aids, from which the overall winners are determined), while Christoph Harras-Wolff and Gereon Wischerhoff from Bielefeld (D) in a BMW 3.0 CSL (1973) came third. For two-time winners Alexander Linz and Michaela Beznaus (Lower Austria) in their Alfa Romeo Giulia Carabinieri (1972), it was only enough for fifth place this time - in the pouring rain, the pair simply collected too many penalty points on Friday.
The sports classification (with electronic support) was won by Burkhard Müller and Fabian Mohr (Rülzheim, Germany) in a Mercedes-Benz 250 SL (1967), and the duo also secured the Sepp Greger Hillclimb Cup. Victory in the Classic Trophy (same route, fewer special stages) went to Reinhard and Erika Huemer from Regau/OÖ in a Ferrari Dino 246 GT, built in 1972, ahead of Ralf Ehlen and Heike Köppel from Ratingen/D in a Porsche 356, 1956 and Christoph Schoeller and Mary-Ann Grimmenstein from Pullach/D in a Maserati GT from 1961.
The most beautiful cars of the event were a rare 1936 Alvis-Riley 4.3 (Peter Manfred and Barbara Schläppi-Gasser from Lenk, CH) in the pre-war category and a 1962 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II DHC (Peter Michael Jansen and Alexandra Oltean from Herrliberg, CH) in the post-war category.
Successful overall Alpenrallye package
The 35th Kitzbüheler Alpenrallye had everything to offer that makes a classic car event successful: breathtaking vehicles from all eras, exciting competitions, interesting routes, enthusiastic spectators.
The only downer: the weather didn't always play along this time. The weather gods chose Friday, of all days, with the almost 300-kilometre-long royal stage with the Gerlos Pass, Zillertal, Inntal and the wildly romantic Tatzelwurmstraße in Bavaria, to send a heavy rain front to the rally. The participants were compensated for this during the prologue through the Brixental valley and on the final stage into the Pinzgau with the impressive Hochkönigberg route with good mountain views and sunshine here and there and with particularly scenic routes.
A showcase of automotive engineering
Automotive history at close quarters - that's what the Kitzbühel Alpine Rally has been offering for 35 years. Once again this year, automobile fans from near and far did not want to miss this major event for classic car enthusiasts and lavished the 118 gems from six decades with admiring glances.The 118 gems from six decades received admiring glances and well-deserved applause - especially at the grand finale, when all the teams crossed the finish line in Kitzbühel's old town, which was once again stormed by classic car fans.
Classic cars from almost all historical eras of automobile mobility took part in the 35th Alpine Rally. Alpenrallye at the start: From the oldest vehicle in the starting field, a Bentley 4.5 Litre Le Mans Brockman from 1928, which covered the 586 kilometers on the three daily stages - in good company with seven other cars.incidentally, in good company with seven other open-top pre-war classics from the 1920s and 30s, some of which were open and some of which had auxiliary tops, bravely battling their way through the sometimes pouring rain - from coupés, roadsters and saloons from the 50s and 60s to rarities from the 70s. The Alpine Rally once again presented itself as a cross-section of automotive engineering from six decades: this time, no fewer than 27 different brands were represented.
Further information and pictures of the 35th Kitzbühel Alpine Rally 2022 can be found on the event website.
