SPECIAL EVENT (MAROC, FR.) - THE 15th MAROC CLASSIC RALLY

Sixty teams are entered in the "Classic" class; 15 in the "Prestige" class. As of today, the provisional entry list for the 15th "MAROC CLASSIC - La Route du Coeur", which runs on 15-22 March 2008, is already closed and sets a new record.

Led by the winners in 2006 and 2007, Oliver Lazar/Stephane Agostini, at the wheel of their faithful Ferrari 308, the French contingent includes a score of the best-prepared crews.

On the other hand, greater interest in the MAROC CLASSIC among the British has produced many more competitors from the UK. No fewer than 12 will start from Rabat, including two of the only pre-war cars entered in the event: an Alvis and a 1937 Lagonda, both exceptional cars.

Apart from these rare pearls, British manufacturers dominate the "Classic" class, where they make up more than one third of the list. Jaguars boast the lion's share, with no fewer than 16 XK or E Types, followed by six Austin Healeys, two Sunbeam Tigers and single examples from Lotus, Morgan, Rolls Royce and Mini Cooper.

The German car industry is well represented, too, its honour defended by an armada of 11 Porsches (356 and 911 models) and six Mercedes (including a trio of 300 SLs).

Italian hopes depend on four Ferraris, four Alfa Romeos and two Maseratis, while Sweden is represented by two Volvos.

In the "Prestige" class, with its rich selection of exceptional cars, the entries include a rare Mercedes-McLaren SLR and (subject to confirmation) one of the magnificent new Ford GTs.

This top-class entry will leave Rabat on 16 March for a route of almost 2,300 kilometres, taking competitors through seven legs, from the mysterious Tangier, via the marvelous Marrakech, the majestic medina at Fez, the chiefs' tent at Tazzarine, the picturesque bivouac at M'Hamid, the luxurious pool of the Berber Palace at Ouarzazate, the mountains and valleys of the Atlas, and the very margins of the desert. . .

Morocco is a land of sublime and striking contrasts, above all a land fit for those who love to drive.

The MAROC CLASSIC is also "La Route du Coeur" (the road to the heart), to which competitors have given generously for almost ten years. This year, they will again help to pay - at the Auction or by anonymous donations - for social projects run by our partner, l'Heure Joyeuse (Happy Hour). Since the year 2000, these donations have totaled almost four million Dirham, or 360,000 Euros.