The Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) is a motor rally championship run under the auspicies of the FIA. First held in 1984 the championship encompasses a series of rallies held across Western Asia. The championship has featured long-running events like Rally of Lebanon, Rally Oman and the Troodos Rally in Cyprus as well as World Rally Championship event Jordan Rally. Many of the rallies in the region pre-date national independence, mostly from the United Kingdom.

The Cyprus Rally is a rallying competition held yearly in Cyprus since 1970. The event is run by the Cyprus Automobile Association and is based in the city of Limassol (Lemesos). It is run on the winding roads of the nearby mountains of Troödos. It was part of the FIA's World Rally Championship (WRC) from 2000 to 2006. In 2007 and 2008 the event was part of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC). The Cyprus Rally rejoined the WRC in 2009, taking advantage of the new regulations to become the only mixed surface event.