Finnish youngster Anton Alén, son of rally legend Markku, was the fastest of the Abarth contingent on the Rally of Portugal shakedown test near Faro this morning. Former FIA World Rally Champion Didier Auriol is coming out of retirement to drive a Grande Punto Abarth in Portugal, the first of a mixed programme this year.

The area around Loulé started to feel all the emotions of the Vodafone Rally of Portugal this morning, the second round of the 2008 Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) with the usual shakedown that formed a final opportunity for the drivers test their cars before the official start this evening near the historic town of Faro.

A dry and dusty shakedown stage was dominated by two Peugeot drivers, Luca Rosseti and Bruno Magalhaes, who swapped fastest times. Anton Alén and François Duval were the fastest of the Abarth runners this morning as the Italian brand prepares to fight for victory and manufacturers points. Juho Hanninen was the best of the conventional Group N Cars.

There were no major technical problems for any of the drivers – only a puncture for Fernando Peres and Bernardo Sousa - while Dani Sola complained about an engine that seemed to be lacking in power. Duval, who is being reacquainted with the Grande Punto Abarth on this rally after driving it to victory last year, commented: “I am satisfied with the car and the rally so far. But I think I have no chance of fighting for the win, because I am first on the road and that is sure to lead to a certain loss of time.”

Jan Kopecky will participate on at least four IRC rallies this year. After a fifth place on the opening round in Turkey, he is aiming for an equally good result in Portugal: “I am sure I won’t be able to do any better," he said. "My position on the road is not the best. I know a little about this rally from 2007 but last year I had some brake problems on the first day, so I did not do many of the stages.”

Bruno Magalhaes was the best of the Portuguese drivers. For him it was a good shakedown test: “The suspension set-up is good," he said. "We didn’t change anything during the morning, and so I am feeling quite confident. This is going to be a good fight even with only two recce runs for each stage. Many of my rivals are used to a limited number of runs, but I am used to a bit more than that." Nonetheless, Magalhaes finished second on his last participation in the IRC - last year's Madeira Rally - and he is hoping for another podium finish.