Abarth factory driver Andrea Navarra has said that the level of competition on the IRC series in Sanremo this week is so high that there could be up to 15 potential winners of his home event. Naturally, he aims to be amongst them. "There is an incredibly high standard in Sanremo this year," the 36 year-old Italian told the official IRC website yesterday. "With people like Gilles Panizzi and Giandomenico Basso driving, there are about 15 cars that could win. Of course we want to be one of them: Sanremo is an event I've always liked but recently it hasn't been very kind to me."

Navarra, who is currently five points off the IRC series lead, forms part of a three-car Abarth team with Basso and Umberto Scandola. Mitsubishi driver Sandro Sottile, who finished third in Sanremo last year, has confirmed that he will not take part in this year's event. The Sanremo Rally - round seven of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, which takes place from September 27-29 - will host the biggest ever entry seen on an IRC event! In total, there will be 18 Super 2000 cars and 99 IRC-registered crews for the Ligurian rally.

Amongst the star attractions will be Gilles Panizzi, bidding for his fourth consecutive Sanremo victory, and Giandomenico Basso - in contention for his second consecutive Italian Championship. Last year’s Rally Sanremo winner Paolo Andreucci will be another star attraction in a Ralliart Italy Mitsubishi Lancer, while Umberto Scandola makes a welcome return to the factory Abarth team – this time co-driven by Guido d’Amore. Rally director Sergio Maiga commented: “We’ve had so much interest this year that it’s been a real challenge trying to fit everyone in. It’s a nice problem to have, as this is the price you pay for success. Having such a full entry list is a fantastic reward for all our efforts, which we very much appreciate, and we will be doing our best to put on a good show for all our fans.”

Spectators will be in for an extra treat this year, as a number of classic rally cars will drive through the stages about an hour before the star attractions. These jewels from rallying’s history will include a Lancia Stratos and an Audi Quattro. This is a rally of records, both as far as concern top cars and entrants’ number, with two legs and ten special stages, divided in three days, and it’ll also be the most important event of the Sanremo weekend.
 

In order to guarantee four full day motorsport for fans and not only fans, there’ll be a series of side events both for people that have been following rallies for a long time and people that are getting ready to discover them.

To start with today (Wednesday) will see the opening of the Service Park, that this year will be located on sea front Italo Calvino, Carlo Dapporto square and also sea front Vittorio Emanuele, while today the “Rally Village” will open too, in the area in front of the ex-railway goods sheds. Tomorrow is going to be rich with events: besides scrutineering and tests with racing cars at San Romolo – a grand rehearsal for drivers and teams – the meeting, organised by ACI Sport with high school pupils of the whole province, pivoting on a topic of great interest, safety on the roads.

At 10 o’clock on Thursday morning at Sanremo Palafiori, Sandro Munari will broach this subject. In the afternoon at 5 pm, after the usual pre-race Press Conference, the rally starts, the protagonists of today will pass through the Sanremo inland roads, headed by a big group of cars that wrote rallying history. Three timed sections, then a pause at the Service Park and after that the famous Monte Bignone Ronde, the first one on the road will finish at 11.15 pm. It is the “rally night” that one can spend on the passes of the west Ligurian mountains or along the sea front Matuzio and also at the Decò American Bar listening to music.

A few hours rest and on Friday at 10,25 am the engines will be turned on again to get ready for the second part of the first leg. In the afternoon at the Federazione Operaia (workers federation) venue in Via Corradi, Sandro Munari will get on stage again to present the book he wrote with the precious collaboration of the Italian journalist Sergio Remondino, entitled “Una vita di traverso” (A sideways’ life). Saturday September 29th the 'Grand Final': From 08.00 am to 4.20 pm the last leg of Rallye Sanremo will take place.