The Abarth team has completed five days of testing with the Grande Punto on asphalt, as it gears up to the first sealed-surface round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, the Ypres Rally in Belgium

The was little luck for the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth crews chasing European points on the 34th INA Croatia Delta Rally at the weekend, and despite the machine posting fastest time on 10 of the 18 stages

The factory Fiat Rally Team claimed a double victory with its Palio Abarth machines on the Rally of Erechim which counted towards the South American, Brazilian and Gaúcho Rally Championships

It wasn't to be a winning debut with the Abarth team for Anton Alen as dramas late this afternoon dropped him down to fourth, although team mate Andrea Navarra fought up the leaderboard to finish second

Anton Alen has got off to a flying start on his very first drive for the Abarth team, finishing the first leg of the IRC-counting Fiat Rally in Turkey this afternoon with a controlling 17 second advantage at the front

Abarth factory driver Andrea Navarra will be looking to defend his Intercontinental Rally Challenge points lead when the second round of the series, the 36th Fiat Rally, gets underway this afternoon

Giandomenico Basso and Mitia Dotta raced to second place in the factory-run Grande Punto Abarth S2000 on the Targa Florio Rally at the weekend, the event dominated by tyre choice

Fiat crew, Fabio Dall' Agnol and Marcelo Dalmut, claimed their second consecutive victory with Palio Abarth Rally during the second round of the Brazilian Rally Championship

The Fiat Rally Team has received for the second consecutive year the prizes awarded by the Brazilian Confederation of Motoring for the titles won by Luís Tedesco/Bruno Mega and Reinaldo Varela/Kz Morales

Abarth factory driver Giandomenico Basso controlled this weekend's 31st Rally 1000 Miglia from start to finish to record his first win of the year and move into the lead of the Italian Rally Championship after three rounds

Photo Gallery: Italian Rally Championship, Rd3 - 31st Rally Mille Miglia

A rare and forgotten Australian sportscar with Italian links bounced into the limelight when Adam and David Kaplan set the fastest time in the Targa Tasmania Shannons Class Prologue, driving the Giocattolo Group B

Volkan Işık and Güray Karacar will race the Grande Punto Abarth S2000 in the 2007 FIA European Rally Championship as the Fiat Motorsporlari team aim to emulate the achievement of Giandomenico Basso last year

Under a bright and sunny sky 130 cars crossed the start ramp for the first event of the 2007 Rally Universitário Fiat season which took place in the Brazilian city of Sorocaba, which is located in the state of São Paulo

Giandomenico Basso's challenge for victory and title points on the 31st Rally 1000 Miglia, the third round of the 2007 Italian Rally Championship, will get underway this evening with the opening short 'superspecial' stage

Abarth's new diesel-powered Grande Punto R3D rallycar, which is forming the basis of a new one-make championship, is set to appear on two rounds of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge

After retiring from the opening round of the Italian Rally Championship, Giandomenico Basso in the Grande Punto Abarth arrived at the 35th Rally di San Marino needing a healthy points score

Photo Gallery: Italian Rally Championship Rd2, 35th Rally di San Marino - Grande Punto Abarth S2000

Fabio Dall Agnol, driving a factory-supported Fiat Palio Abarth Rally, made a winning start as the 2007 Brazilian Rally Championship got underway at the weekend with the Rally do Litoral

Photo Gallery: Brazilian Rally Championship, Rd1 - 11th Rally do Litoral

Stoneleigh Park in the UK welcomed 25,000 visitors to Race Retro, the International Historic Motorsport Show, and at the event a plethora of past Lancia rallying legends were in evidence

4th Race Retro, International Historic Motorsports Show Photo Gallery: Lancia

Veteran Australian Phil Buggee will become the first driver to enter a diesel-powered car on the Targa Tasmania when, at the same time, he will also give the Fiat Grande Punto its Australian rally debut

The prestigious Safari Rally trophy is now back at Abarth's headquarters in Turin following Andrea Navarra´s Intercontinental Rally Challenge victory at the wheel of the Grande Punto Abarth

Photo Gallery: Intercontinental Rally Challenge, Rd1 - ECB Safari Rally