The Belgian rally season stirs to life this Saturday, 28 February, as the opening round of the 2026 Kroon-Oil Belgian Rally Championship roars into motion in Sint‑Truiden. The Rally van Haspengouw — now in its 28th running — remains a fixture of the national calendar, its twisting concrete lanes cutting through the bare fruit orchards of Limburg. This year’s entry list reads like a roll call of Belgium’s rallying elite: 74 cars will line up for competition, joined by a further 50 in the Droneport Regularity and Slowly Sideways demonstrations. Among them, 17 top‑spec Rally2 cars, five GT machines, and no fewer than five former national champions. Across 12 special stages and 151 competitive kilometres, spectacle seems guaranteed.
Belgian champion Jos Verstappen leads the field, his Citroën C3 Rally2 proudly wearing the number one plate for the first time. Cédric Cherain, last season’s runner‑up, will aim to trouble him in a Skoda Fabia RS, fresh from a confident run at Monte Carlo that underlined his growing fluency with the Czech machine. Skoda’s long‑time stalwart Freddy Loix joins the front ranks too, trading experience and precision for any missing seat time.
Stéphane Lefebvre, who claimed victory in Ypres last year, returns armed with a Toyota Yaris GR Rally2 and the steadying hand of co‑driver Pieter Tsjoen — together a potent combination. Watch too for Bjorn Syx, whose raw pace has often hinted at an upset, and for Maxime Potty, a former champion remaining loyal to his Citroën. Behind them, a tight battle simmers for podium places, with Bastien Rouard and Thomas Martens spearheading Hyundai’s assault under the BMA banner, while Fred Miclotte and local co‑driver Robbie Plevoets look to repeat last year’s second place in their VW Polo GTI Rally2.
Among the returning names, Emile Breittmayer will seek redemption after a troubled Swedish outing, and John Wartique carries form and rhythm from Monte‑Carlo and Scandinavia. Local interest runs deep too: Nicola Stampaert and Steve Matterne will again rely on home knowledge to guide their Skoda Fabia RS through the narrow lanes, while Bob Colsoul — a two‑time Group N champion — returns to his home rally eleven years on, now at the wheel of an SXM‑run Fabia.
Should the weather hold, the five GT entrants could spice the top ten. Pieter‑Jan Michiel Cracco heads the Porsche contingent with his 992 GT, joined by Dirk Deveux and Frank Jorissen, while the Alpine A110s of Chris Vandamme and Dutchman Michel Van der Blonk promise a contrasting, elegant challenge on Haspengouw’s quick but treacherous farm roads.
Beyond the front runners, intrigue abounds: the Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup brings together emerging names like Lander Depotter, Manuel Merlevede, and Corentin Fiasse, while the Junior BRC opens its account with Emilien Allart and Nolann Lejeune leading a fresh generation of RACB talent. In the Historic ranks, keep an eye on Tom Boonen and Guino Kenis — both capable of adding colour to the weekend’s narrative.
The 2026 Rally van Haspengouw offers a compelling start to the new season: a blend of precision driving, rural spectacle, and quiet expectation. Engines will fire in Brustem from 8 a.m., with the winner — and the first championship leader of the new campaign — expected under the evening lights of Sint‑Truiden at 7 p.m.
Belgium’s rally roads are awake once more.
