With the opening superspecial stage safely negotiated last night the challenge in Madeira by the Abarth factory drivers Giandomenico Basso (above) and Umberto Scandola (top) gets underway in earnest this morning in the mountains around Funchal.

With the opening superspecial stage safely negotiated last night the challenge in Madeira by the Abarth factory drivers Giandomenico Basso and Umberto Scandola gets underway in earnest this morning in the mountains around Funchal.

Nicolas Vouilloz in Peugeot Belgium´s 207 S2000, was fastest driver in the Avenida do Mar superspecial stage last night, the opening test of the Madeira Rally. Although he brushed the tyre barrier twice, the Frenchman set the best time of 1m33.3s. "It was a nice stage: I was amazed by the number of people," he said. "However, the superspecial doesn't mean much, so we'll see what happens during the proper stages. I think it will be a very close fight."

In second place on the opening stage was well-known Italian Renato Travaglia, driving a Grande Punto Abarth S2000, with a time of 1m34.8s. Although he was feeling unwell, Travaglia beat local hero Bruno Magalhaes (Peugeot Portugal), who was third-fastest in the stage. Freddy Loix and Brice Tirabassi completed the top five, while IRC series joint leader Luca Rossetti was sixth for Peugeot Italy.

The first proper stage of the rally gets underway at 09:00 this morning (local time) with dry and warm weather predicted. The rally is based in Madeira's capital Funchal, which was also the venue for last night's resoundingly popular superspecial stage.

Last year, Abarth driver Giandomenico Basso dominated the event with a masterful performance in changing weather conditions. Madeira’s climate is defined as ‘oceanic subtropical’ – which means that sudden rain storms can strike with little warning. This makes tyre choice a crucial ingredient to success on the event, and as is often the case, the best compromise is often the most effective choice.

The surfaces vary quite considerably as well. Many of the stages run on smooth, comparatively new asphalt, but there are also some stages where the asphalt surface is older and broken, depriving the cars of traction and grip. With the superspecial stage completed, the cars head into the mountains around Funchal this morning for two full days of rallying today (Friday) and tomorrow (Saturday). In total, there are 282.18 competitive kilometres on the menu, split into 21 stages. The event is due to finish at 18:00 on Saturday evening back in Funchal.

One of the star attractions of the entry list is the return of joint IRC series leader Luca Rossetti, who drives for Peugeot Italy. Rossetti is currently tied on 26 points with Peugeot Belgium’s Nicolas Vouilloz at the head of the standings, so both of them will be trying their hardest on the twisty roads of Madeira. One of the strongest challengers will be last year’s winner Giandomenico Basso, who drives for Abarth, but the Italian team has been forced to change its driver line-up at the last minute after Anton Alén was struck down by a virus. On this event the Finn has been replaced by Umberto Scandola, who drove for Abarth on the IRC last year.

The IRC regulars will face tough opposition from a number of very strong local drivers: particularly Bruno Magalhaes, who finished on the podium in Madeira last year. The Peugeot driver has won all four of the Portuguese Championship rounds held so far this year, so heads to one of his home IRC events as a strong contender for victory.