Spaniard Dani Sola switched to the Italian S2000 machine for this season and has already impressed, he showed a turn of speed on his way to an eventual 6th place finish on the Istanbul Rally in April. Portuguese driver José-Pedro Fontes will bring local knowledge and he demonstrated that he could maintain a front running pace during his only IRC appearance last year, the Rally Vinho da Madeira.

Round two of this year’s IRC takes place on the Rally Portugal, which is based in the Algarve city of Faro. The rally also contains the most impressive entry list yet to be seen on an IRC event, with former World Champion Didier Auriol amongst the leading entries and two-time World Champion Marcus Gronholm driving the zero car.

The rally will see an all out battle for honours between the Abarth and Peugeot Super2000 machines with the Italian brand lining up in numerically inferior numbers to its French rival (6 vs 10) but with each car boasting a crew that can battle for outright rally honours. Giandomenico Basso and Anton Alén will star for the factory Abarth team, with the former looking to get his IRC title bid off the ground after collecting no points on the opening round in Turkey and the latter looking forward to a rally talking place on his favoured surface, gravel.

In support of the factory duo will be a quartet of rapid privateers: Francois Duval renews an association with the Grande Punto Abarth which brought him rally success last year; Spaniard Dani Sola, a former Junior World Champion, switched to the Italian S2000 machine for this season and has already impressed, he showed a turn of speed on his way to an eventual 6th place finish on the Istanbul Rally in April; former FIA World Rally Champion Didier Auriol is coming out of retirement for this event and is an unknown quantity, although he is expected to be as quick as he ever was; while the final Abarth runner in the starting list is the highly experienced local driver José-Pedro Fontes who demonstrated he could maintain a front running pace during his only IRC appearance last year, on the Rally Vinho da Madeira.

Up against the Abarth runners in the quest for manufacturers' points will be no less than 10 Super2000 Peugeot 2007s, led out by IRC drivers' points leader Luca Rossetti (10 pts), second placed Nicolas Vouilloz (8pts) and fifth placed Jan Kopecky (4 pts). The dark horses in Portugal will be the GpN Mitsubishi Evo IX of Italian Paolo Andreucci and the new Citroen C2 R2 of quick Frenchman Simon Jean-Joseph.

These top drivers have been attracted by what is well-known as a classic event. The Portugal Rally has formed part of the sport’s history over the years, and it is well-known for spectacular gravel stages, breathtaking scenery, and a warm and enthusiastic local public. In the past, the Portugal Rally used to be based towards the north of the country, in the city of Oporto, but for the last three years it has found a home in Faro. The actual stages are top quality, providing a massively enjoyable challenge to all the drivers, with the surfaces made up of soft and loose gravel. There are not too many rocks, and the surfaces tend to clean moderately after the passage of the first car – making things fair for everybody. Although the summer months are almost upon us, the weather at this time of year in the Algarve can be unpredictable: two years ago the rally was blighted by thick fog.

New for this year is a two-kilometre spectator superspecial stage around the streets of Faro. This new stage is compact but very quick, so is sure to provide plenty of entertainment for the many spectators that are expected. After the initial taster, the opening day of real action will see the competitors tackle seven special stages on Friday, with two service halts in total during the day. Competitors return to parc ferme at 18:09, having completed the first 118 competitive kilometres of this challenging event. The action resumes at 0805 the following morning, when the crews tackle a morning loop of three stages that is repeated in the afternoon, with central service at Faro stadium in between. The winner is scheduled to cross the finish ramp at 18:10 in Faro on Saturday evening.