Veteran rally star Giandomenico Basso (middle) salvaged Abarth honour on the Monte Carlo Rally last month with a fighting fifth place finish while his 25-year-old team mate Anton Alén (top and bottom) agonising retired with the finishing ramp in sight.

From the treacherous snow and ice of the 78th Monte Carlo Rally last month the Abarth factory team now switches to a very rough gravel surface on the other side of the world as the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) goes into the final countdown to the start of the 29th Rally Internacional de Curitiba in eight days time.

Italian Fiat Group veteran rally driver Giandomenico Basso, who salvaged Abarth's honour in Monte Carlo with a fighting fifth place finish, and his 25-year-old team mate Anton Alén, will make up a two-car Super 2000 challenge from the Abarth factory that will seek to quickly reign in the advantage that Peugeot walked away from Monte Carlo with.

And in preparation for the tough new challenge of Brazil, Basso, Alén, and the team's new 2009 signing Luca Rossetti, all spent time behind the wheel of the latest-specification Grande Punto Abarth on some gravel stages near Siena in Tuscany earlier this month. The test aimed to develop some new running gear on the Grande Punto Abarth, and also to reacquaint the drivers with gravel following the ice and snow of the Monte Carlo Rally.

The first two rounds of this year’s Intercontinental Rally Challenge could not provide a greater contrast to each other. From the icy rigours of Monte Carlo the competitors swiftly move to gravel on the other side of the world, where temperatures are set to be dry and warm. In order to make the transition, a number of changes need to be made to the cars.

The biggest change between a gravel and asphalt set-up is that the cars ride much higher on gravel. This is because the roads are rougher, so the cars need to be tall enough to pass over most surface obstacles, and provide enough suspension travel to absorb jumps and bumps. As a result the suspension set-up on each car for gravel tends to be a lot softer than it is for an asphalt surface, enabling the cars to flow better over the rough roads.

The tyres are also very different. Gravel tyres are tougher, in order to resist punctures, and they also feature a distinctive deeply-grooved pattern to expel dirt, dust and debris. The wheels and brakes on gravel tend to be smaller than those seen on asphalt rallies, as the braking forces are less because the cars slide more (due to the loose surfaces involved offering less traction and grip). As a result, the physical forces exerted upon the drivers tend to be smaller, thanks to the lower G-forces that are generated.

However, one extra problem that the cars will have to face in Brazil is cooling. The low ambient temperatures in Monte Carlo meant that it was comparatively easy for engines and brakes to stay cool, but this will not be the case in the higher temperatures of Brazil – where it could be easy for the cars to overheat. Although there are many subtle differences between an asphalt and a gravel set-up, a skilled group of mechanics can swap a car from one configuration to another in just a couple of hours. This is will have taken place back at base, before the cars were all shipped off to South America last earlier this month.