Basso put in a dominant performance in Madeira last year (above), and he is looking forward to returning to the Atlantic island and asphalt rallying. “It’s a very nice rally, which I enjoy a lot,” he said.

The Rali Vinho da Madeira, which is the next and fifth round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) from August 1-2, will have a total of 66 entries consisting of the top IRC stars as well as many strong local challengers.

Last year’s winner Giandomenico Basso will be the first car off the ramp, on a rally that will welcome back many familiar faces. Amongst the drivers returning to the IRC are Corrado Fontana and Luca Betti, (both in Peugeot 207 S2000 cars) while former European Champion Renato Travaglia is also back in his Island Motorsport-run Abarth Grande Punto; the former double European Champion will be seeded at no 4.

Basso is feeling confident that his Abarth factory team can improve its performance heading into this year’s Rali Vinho da Madeira, following a strong run on the Rally Russia, the last IRC round. On the Russian event, the two Abarths of Anton Alén and Basso finished second and third – boosting the Italian team’s score in the manufacturers’ rankings. Alén was severely delayed by a double puncture on the opening day that compromised his chances of winning, while Basso enjoyed a reliable run that saw him consistently at the sharp end of the field.

“I think everyone had a few problems in Russia, but on the whole our performance was good as it showed both pace and consistency,” said Basso. “Of course we have to keep on testing and working to improve the package, but the Grande Punto is fundamentally a very good car and we have made a lot of progress compared to last year. Naturally our rivals have moved on as well, but this is the nature of competition.”

Basso put in a dominant performance in Madeira last year, and he is looking forward to returning to the Atlantic island and asphalt rallying. “It’s a very nice rally, which I enjoy a lot,” he said. “The competition will be even stronger this year, but I start with the aim of trying to win. The season hasn’t got off to the best start for us, but I am confident that we can turn it round.”

However one of the biggest draws will be joint IRC series leader Luca Rossetti, who is currently tied with Nicolas Vouilloz at the head of the standings on 26 points. For Rossetti, who drives for Peugeot Italy, Madeira represents a golden opportunity to come back and reclaim the initiative at the head of the points table. However, the Italian’s task is far from easy, as he will be challenged by several local drivers who have shown themselves to be capable of fighting for podiums in the past. Bruno Magalhaes (Peugeot), who finished second in Madeira last year, is a definite contender for victory, as is the Fiat Vodafone Team's Abarth driver Jose Fontes who will start at no 10, one place behind the second factory car of Alén. A final Grande Punto Abarth S2000, seeded at no 27, will be driven by Nuno Barroso Pereira, while Marco Cavigioli will be behind the wheel of his regular Island Motorsport-run Fiat Grande Punto Multijet, starting at no 26 as he chases points in the 2WD Cup.

The Rali Vinho da Madeira gets underway with a superspecial stage on Thursday 31 July in Madeira's capital, Funchal. The competitors will then go on to tackle another 12 stages on Friday 1 August, before the event concludes with eight more stages on Saturday 2 August: making a total of 21 special stages. This year's Madeira Rally also features a new service park at Horarios do Funchal.