Giandomenico Basso, who moved into the joint lead of the European Rally Championship in Bulgaria 12 days ago, will be looking to add further ground on his rivals here as the Atlantic island rally counts towards both series. The hot favourite amongst the private Abarth entries on the rally is the #16 white, blue and black machine of Bernardo Sousa who was born in Funchal, the capital of Madeira, and learned his trade competing on its demanding asphalt roads. Another eagerly-anticipated driver in Madeira this weekend is the 2008 IRC 2WD Champion Marco Cavigioli, who is returning to the IRC this weekend at the wheel of a Grande Punto Abarth S2000.

The factory Abarth drivers Giandomenico Basso and Luca Rossetti have begun their bid to win the 50th Rali Vinho Madeira which kicked off last night with a Superspecial stage of the streets of Funchal and is set to get underway proper this morning. Abarth is looking for its first win of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge season this weekend while Basso, who moved into the joint lead of the European Rally Championship in Bulgaria 12 days ago, will be looking to add further ground on his rivals here as the Atlantic island rally counts towards both series.

On the short Superspecial last night Rossetti posted a time of 1:35.4 which gave him the fifth fastest time while Basso was next up, just a whisker back (1:34.7). The best time on the Superspecial though went to IRC points leader Kris Meeke (1:32.9) who had promised to take a measured approach to a rally but immediately threw down the gauntlet with the fastest stage time.

The 50th edition of the popular rally got underway in front of tens of thousands of fans. With a ceremonial start in the centre of town, the cars then blasted into the Superspecial on the streets on the historic seafront as a prelude to the action coming over the next two days on the Atlantic island. Through today and tomorrow the rally will take place in the hills and plateaux of the region. Featuring such famous stages as Chao da Lagoa, Paul and the breathtaking descent of Encumeada, are among the highlights of the event structure, drawing thousands of fans in the balmy summer heat

Meeke stormed through the Superspecial stage 0.9s faster in his Peugeot 207 S2000 than local hero Bruno Magalhães in his similar car. "Third place here would feel like a win," Meeke said. "I've won three in a row but the points difference to Jan Kopecký in second place is still only one point. It's clear how competitive the IRC is this year and I've got to focus on getting points." Meanwhile Peugeots filled the six of the eight top places as the field returned to Parc Ferme for the overnight halt, with only the Rossetti and Basso offering any resistance to the French cars. Magalhães was followed by Corrado Fontana's 207, with defending IRC champion and 2008 Madeira winner Nicolas Vouilloz fourth.

Supporting the factory Abarth duo this weekend are a trio of privately entered Grande Punto Abarths and the hot favourite amongst these is the #16 white, blue and black machine of Bernardo Sousa who was born in Funchal, the capital of Madeira, and learned his trade competing on its demanding asphalt roads. He posted the fifteenth quickest time on the Superspecial last night in 1:39.5. Sousa was a two-time winner of Madeira’s junior championship and claimed his first overall rally win on the island when he won the Rally Porto Santo Line in 2007. Since then the 22-year-old has competed in the Production Car World Rally Championship and made his IRC debut in Portugal in May 2008. His car is being run by the Italian Procar team, and alongside Sousa is co-driver Jorge Carvalho. Sousa’s only other appearance in the IRC this year was on Sata Rally Açores in May when he finished tenth behind Magalhães.

Another eagerly-anticipated driver is 2008 IRC 2WD Champion Marco Cavigioli, who is returning to the IRC this weekend at the wheel of a Grande Punto Abarth S2000. With co-driver Enrico Cantoni alongside him, the talented Italian is keen to make a big splash on his asphalt outing and he posted the seventeenth fastest time on SS1, in 1:40.0. Rounding out the Grande Punto Abarth contingent is the #23 machine driven by Albert Llovera who went round the streets of Funchal in 1:44.7, the thirty third fastest time.

The 2WD Cup is set to provide fireworks in the Atlantic as well, with the return of two of the top contenders – Manuel Villa in his Fiat Punto S1600 and the turbocharged Peugeot 207 RC of Denis Milet – with both men determined to put a halt to Honda's recent run of form. They will take on a huge number of local stars in similar equipment in what will be another key battle to savour on the 50th Rali Vinho Madeira. First blood in this battle last night went to Villa who posted a time of 1:44.1 on the Superspecial. This was also a hugely impressive thirtieth overall, with Millet 13 places further back on the overall classification, although local drivers filled out the top positions in the class. However there was quickly one less rival to worry about as 2WD Cup contender Samir Sousa was forced to withdraw after his Peugeot 206 S1600 suffered a terminal oil pump failure on the way to the start ramp.

50th Rali Vinho Madeira - provisional standings after SS1:

1 Meeke (Peugeot) 1m 32.9s
2 Magalhaes (Peugeot) +0.9s
3 Fontana (Peugeot) +1.9s
4 Vouilloz (Peugeot) +2.0s
5 Rossetti (Abarth) +2.5s
6 Basso (Abarth) +2.8s
= Camacho (Peugeot) +2.8s
8 Loix (Peugeot) +2.9s