Emmanuel Gascou has now officially announced his presence in CFRT.

It's certainly been a busy day for the French Gravel Rally Championship! After Sarah Rumeau's participation was officially announced earlier this afternoon, it's now the turn of reigning French Gravel Rally Vice-Champion Emmanuel Gascou to confirm his participation for the upcoming season. He will once again be driving a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, still prepared by the AMD Motorsport team, and will again be partnered by Gilles de Turckheim. Together, the duo notably won the final round of last year's season, the Rally They had not only competed in the Terre de Vaucluse rally, but had also demonstrated an impressive ability to increase their pace throughout the season, notably appearing at the Rallye Terre des Cardabelles as genuine contenders for victory against Laurent Pellier and Kévin Bronner. Perhaps unintentionally, they now officially carry the label of title favorites.

For Emmanuel Gascou, is the best yet to come?

With nearly thirty years of competition under his belt, "Manu" Gascou may have the greatest chapter of his career ahead of him. In the absence of the reigning French Champion this season, and considering his performance last year, finding a new lease of life at AMD Motorsport thanks in particular to the coaching of Mathieu Franceschi, and despite other renowned drivers also being on the starting grid, it's highly likely that Gascou will be able to return to winning ways right from the start, perhaps even at the opening round of the Castine Terre d'Occitanie on March 07th and 08th. In 2025, he reached the podium six times in six rallies and demonstrated the full extent of his talent, notably in Corsica, where he managed to climb back up the standings after gearbox problems early in the rally.

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Facing Gascou, a very impressive field

Even in just the first two rounds of the season, Gascou will have to fend off attacks from numerous rivals equipped with similar machines. These include Conner Martell at 2C Compétition, Sarah Rumeau of course, who is in the same boat as the American driver, Florian Condamines, and Quentin Ribaud. Hyundai The French Gravel Rally Championship (CFRT) will feature the i20N Rally2, as well as Benjamin Clémençon in the Citroën C3 Rally2. The field for this French Gravel Rally Championship looks to be competitive and promises a hard-fought season. As a reminder, seven events are on the calendar this season, and the championship will conclude in November with the Rallye Terre de Vaucluse. Before then, the CFRT participants will have explored the Occitanie region extensively, as well as Corsica for the Rallye Terre d'Aléria.