Petr Pavel’s hometown of Černouček is hosting municipal elections on October 9–10, but he won’t be able to vote as he’s on a private trip through the 19th for a very valid reason (to us, anyway).

The Czech president spent Friday at the Rallye du Maroc’s bivouac in Zagora, where the fourth stage concluded that day. He reconnected with his compatriots who were competing in the rally like Martin Prokop and Tomáš Vrátný.

It’s no secret that Pavel is a motorsports fan, especially rally raid. He attended the 2025 Dakar Rally and worked a few stages as a photographer, eventually hosting an exhibition for his pictures and auctioning some off for charity. Pavel is especially close with Vrátný’s Fesh Fesh team: he christened the Tatra FF7 at its reveal, attended the unveiling of the FF8 truck over the summer, and has welcomed the team to his office at Prague Castle.

His love for the sport naturally extends to the pavement side too. Like Dakar, he has photographed the Hungarian Grand Prix, 24 Hours of Le Mans, MotoGP, and the NASCAR Euro Series. Pavel also test drove a Euro Series car in 2025, and is a supporter of the 1000 mil Československých.

While his RdM visit is a personal trip, he has used his authority as Czech head of state to connect with the racing industry. In June, he met with FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and Toyota Motor Europe to discuss topics like automotive development in Europe.

Stage 4 of the Rallye du Maroc is the penultimate, consisting of a loop starting and finishing in Zagora. Prokop sits 11th in Ultimate while Vrátný is sixth in Truck.

Featured image credit: Martin Prokop