Stellantis Rally Cup Lander Depotter dominates the competition in Roeselare
Last weekend, Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup Belux 2025 drivers competed at the Omloop van Vlaanderen in Roeselare. Lander Depotter made a strong push, securing a substantial points haul. The tone is set…
Unexpected points leader Manuel Merlevede, co-driven by Thomas Cloet, retired on Friday evening after a driveshaft failure during the first special stage. From then, the Flemish round of the championship between Peugeot 208 Rally4s and Opel Corsa Rally4s was set to change the hierarchy.
One duo dominated both days. With 19 fastest times out of 20 stages, Lander Depotter proved to be the fastest. By using his joker during the Omloop van Vlaanderen, he scored 45 points. Mission more than accomplished…
“The car was ready two weeks before the Omloop, which allowed me to check in Kasterlee that everything was working perfectly,” explains Lander Depotter. “We immediately took the lead and controlled the race afterwards.”
And how! For the other favourites, only a few scraps remained. Starting with the young Dutchman Nard Ippen, with Jorie Christiaens as his co-driver. They had a new car at Roeselare, allowing them to score useful points after their forfeit in Ypres.
Ippen stayed ahead of the German Lukas Thiele, who once again had Loris Elst at his side. Thiele secured another podium finish, which puts him in second place in the standings.
The duel between Steven Spittaels-Hans Verhaege and the Irish Niall O’Sullivan-Michael Hamilton – who also drove a new car after their crash in Ypres – turned in the latter's favour, especially when Spittaels received a two-minute penalty for improperly fastening his safety harness at the start of a stage.
Roeselare also marked the start of the second half of the season. Depotter performed excellently and now leads the standings with 78 points. Thiele has 57, and unlucky Merlevede has 31.
The penultimate round of the 2025 Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup Belux will be held on Saturday, September 27th. After Flanders, it's the turn of the East Cantons, with the East Belgian Rally based in Sankt Vith, in the birthplace of one Thierry Neuville…
