Overmountain Rally returns Sept 2025
American pro-rallying will return to the mountains of East Tennessee this fall as the Overmountain Rally Tennessee ™ enters year two as part of the American Rally Association (ARA) National Championship presented by Kubota. The event, which is scheduled to take place September 19-21, 2025, will feature more new stages, a return of the Newport Speedway head-to-head Super Special, and new rally fan zone to bring exciting action to more fans for the duration of the event weekend.
“We know it can be hard to get out in the woods to spectate the rally stageside, so we’re working with Newport Speedway to bring the stages to the fans. The head-to-head super special stage was enormously successful last year, so we’re bringing that back! But this year we’re running it on Friday night to give fans more time to interact with the drivers and teams. Our team is also working on fan zones and more spectator stages on Saturday which will make spectating the rally much more accessible to everyone.”
-David Matheson, Chairman
Rally winner Travis Pastrana wows fans at the Newport Speedway at the 2024 Overmountain Rally Tennessee.
(Photo by Robert King Photography)
Newport, Tennessee will be the official host town for the 2025 rally with Newport Speedway hosting the service park and fan zone for the duration of the rally weekend.
“Newport and Cocke County really embraced the event last year, and we’re excited to continue our partnership with them. We had overwhelmingly positive interactions with everyone from Mayors Mathis and Dykes to the Cocke County EMA who helped us staff a comprehensive safety and emergency response team. We’re very excited to continue our partnership with Cocke County and build on it for years to come.”
-David Matheson, Chairman
Last year, American rallying regulars and international talent faced off at the inaugural Overmountain Rally Tennessee ™ creating drama and storylines unlike any other National Championship event. In the end, Travis Pastrana and Rhianon Gelsomino stood on the top step beating out World Rally Championship regular Josh McErlean and 2024 ARA National Champion Brandon Semenuk. For 2025, the organizing team at Appalachian Rallysport is focused on building a challenging but enjoyable event for all competitors with a single service area and a more condensed route.
WRC Regular Josh McErlean nearly stood on the top step of the 2024 Overmountain Rally in his Motorsport Ireland backed Hyundai i20 Rally2.
(Photo by Robert King Photography)
“We listened to competitor feedback from last year, and we’re committed to operating a safe and enjoyable event for everyone from local regional competitors to WRC regulars. Two of the most common complaints were moving the service park between rally days and the distance between stages on Saturday and Sunday. We’ve condensed the rally to exist in a smaller footprint which will allow us to have a single service area and a shorter recce schedule. This should be a welcome change for all competitors, and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone this fall!”
- Andrew Frick, Clerk of the Course
Volunteer registration is open for those that wish to get up close and personal with the rally cars and teams. Click below to learn more and get registered today! Have questions before committing to volunteer? Reach out to Kim Creek at volunteerforrally@gmail.com.
We’ll see you out there this September!
The Overmountain Rally Tennessee™ is wholly owned and operated by Appalachian Rallysport LLC, sanctioned and insured by United States Auto Club (USAC), and promoted by the American Rally Association (ARA).