Hankook Tire Sponsors ‘2025 WRC’ 5th Round ‘Portugal Rally’ Opens
Hankook Tire & Technology, the exclusive supplier of racing tires for the International Automobile Federation (FIA)-organized ‘2025 World Rally Championship (WRC),’ will host the 5th round Portugal Rally from the 15th to the 18th of May (local time).
The Portugal Rally is a historic event that has been part of the WRC since its inception in 1973. Known as a representative venue of the WRC, it has won the ‘Best Rally in the World’ award five times. With over 90% of the course featuring unpaved surfaces, it is considered one of the most challenging competitions, requiring exceptional technical adaptability and extreme durability from drivers, vehicles, and tires.
This year’s rally comprises a total length of 344.5 km across 24 special stages (SS). The notable ‘Fafe’ stage is famous for scenes of cars jumping over hills towards the finish line, as it is located at the mountain summit.
Due to the nature of repeating the same stage in the morning and afternoon, the rally sees significant surface damage. On the first run, leading vehicles encounter slippery surfaces due to a layer of soft sand, while the second run involves sharp stones and deep ruts impacting the vehicles. The combination of heat and complex mountain road courses makes tire choice a crucial factor in race strategy.
Hankook Tire is supplying the ‘Dynapro R213,’ an extreme all-terrain rally tire, for the Portugal Rally, which excels in absorbing the shocks of unpaved surfaces. The Dynapro R213 offers both hard and soft compounds, making it highly resistant to external impacts and wear in extreme racing conditions. With excellent traction and control performance, it is set to support top-level performance under various surface and climate conditions.
During the Portugal Rally, Hankook Tire will operate a marketing booth called ‘Brand World’ at the service park. The booth will feature various programs for motorsport fans visiting the site, such as a motorsport history zone, a racing simulator experience zone, merchandise sales, and a photo zone.