Top-notch line-up in the 2018 ADAC Rallye Deutschland

• No fewer than 88 rally vehicles on the Special Stages in and around the Saarland region
• Two strong German-German WRC and WRC 2 crews to compete at home
• 23 to start in the ADAC Opel Rallye Cup at the German WRC event

Munich. Here is the final line-up for the ADAC Rallye Deutschland: a total of 88 rally vehicles will bring some spectacular action to the Saarland and neighbouring regions, where the ADAC Rallye Deutschland will take place between 16 and 19 August 2018. The German FIA WRC rally and the ADAC Opel Rallye Cup which will run two races at the ADAC Rallye Deutschland will hold in store 18 challenging Special Stages for the crews with a total length of over 325km.

After last weekend's thrilling Rally Finland, the top drivers of the FIA World Rally Championship will also complete the line-up of the ADAC Rallye Deutschland where we may expect a most exciting duel between the two drivers at the top: WRC leader Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) will bring a 21-point lead over WRC Champion Sébastien Ogier (Ford) to the Saarland. Both of them have already won the ADAC Rallye Deutschland (Neuville 2014, Ogier 2011, 2015, 2016).

At the ADAC Rallye Deutschland, 13 participants will compete in the highest class of the world rally cars. The WRC line-up will also include Marijan Griebel from Germany. In his home game, the former ADAC sport foundation grantee will be behind the wheel of a Citroën DS3 WRC. For the defending U28 European Champion and his co-driver Alexander Rath a lifelong dream will come true. The Citroën, Hyundai and Toyota works teams will each have three world rally cars at the start. The M-Sport World Rally team will have four Ford Fiesta WRC at the ADAC Rallye Deutschland.

The WRC 2 line-up will be equally strong. The most promising crew are Fabian Kreim and Frank Christian from Germany. The two-time German rally champions will compete in a Fabia R5 of SKODA AUTO Deutschland. Kreim, a former ADAC sport foundation grantee like Griebel, aims for the top five in the WRC 2. A total of 19 vehicles have entered the WRC 2. In addition to the WRC, WRC 2 and WRC 3, we will see another 28 crews - including eight German drivers - fight for best times at the ADAC Rallye Deutschland. The 23 participants in the ADAC Opel Rallye Cup will complete the line-up of the ADAC Rallye Deutschland. Two races of this popular single-brand cup will be run at the German WRC rally.

All participants in the ADAC Rallye Deutschland will be introduced to the spectators at the public opening ceremony in St Wendel Thursday night (16 August). In the afternoon, the WRC stars will sign autographs in the Schlossplatz town square. Admission to the opening ceremony is free. From there, the participants will proceed to nearby Wendelinuspark and launch into immediate rally action at the spectacular circuit stage.