Luca Rossetti will start
the Rali Vinho da
Madeira in a factory Abarth Grande Punto S2000 in two
days time as the
Italian aims to keep his European Rally Championship (ERC)
title points advantage intact and deliver the Scorpion a
fourth win on the island in five years. The prestigious Atlantic
island rally also counts as the eighth round of the
Intercontinental Rally Championship (IRC) and will thus
draw a top-level entry list and it will also be the
first time that the Abarth team has appeared in an IRC
round since it quit the series at the end of last
season.Rossetti
will be aiming to defend his ERC title advantage in
Madeira (round six), he currently sits on 103 points
going into the fifth round of the series, the Bosphorous
Rally in Turkey this weekend, while his closest rival,
Luca Betti (Peugeot 207 S2000) has 60 points. The aged
Abarth Grande Punto S2000 is only really at home these
days on fast, smooth, asphalt and the Rali Vinho Maderia
provides its perfect surface: the Scorpion's recent
successes on the island bearing this out.
Giandomenico Basso,
undisputed "king" of
the island, had been expected to start the event but at
the last minute his entry was withdrawn as Abarth he was
unable to plug a funding shortfall, reportedly around
just 15,000 euros, while the organisers had also offered
to contribute towards his costs. With his unrivalled record of three wins
during the last four years (2006, 2007 and 2009) while
in 2008 he was the runner-up to Nicolas Vouilloz
(Peugeot 207 S2000), the Italian will be sorely missed. All these results were at the wheel
of the Super 2000 category Abarth Grande Punto while in
2005, then driving the diminutive Fiat Punto S1600, the
Italian was cruising towards victory when, agonisingly,
he suffered mechanical problems of the final stage
handing a last gasp victory to Renato Travaglia (Renault
Clio S1600).
Significantly, in Madeira the
budget-starved Scorpion team will introduce a new engine
step for Rossetti, much needed as the Grande Punto's engine is evolved from the
long-running 2.0-litre unit that
powered the European and World Touring Car Championship
running Alfa Romeo 156s during the first half of the
last decade.
The Fiat Group has an
impressive winning record on the island rally, between
1983 and 1992 Lancia collected a haul of no less than
eight wins split between the 037 Rally, Delta S4 and
Integrale, while its immortal Stratos visited the
winner's circle in 1979 and one year later it was the
turn of another rally legend, Fiat's 131 Abarth. Alfa
Romeo and Ferrari also have their names on the roll call
of honour in Madeira, the former with a single win in
1961 while the latter can count on back-to-back
victories in 1962 and 1963.
Rossetti
will face tough opposition for honours from a strong IRC
field: Juho
Hanninen, Jan Kopecký and Bruno Magalhaes, the three
winners in the series so far this year will all be in
action while other top drivers in Super 2000 machines
will include Freddy Loix (Skoda Fabia S2000); Bernardo
Sousa and Miguel Campos (Ford Fiesta S2000); Kris Meeke,
Daniel Oliveira, Luca Betti, Burcu Cetinkaya, Dominique
Bruyneel, Marco Tempestini, Vitor Pascoal, Vitor Sá and
Miguel Nunes (Peugeot 207 S2000).
Madeira island is one
of the oldest tourist destinations in Europe and boasts
a unique combination of old world charm and contemporary
innovation. Organised by Club Sports da Madeira, the
Rali Vinho da Madeira was first run in 1979 as a FIA
European Championship Rally, and is also one of the top
events in the Portuguese Rally Championship. The Rali
Vinho da Madeira brings to life these special island
qualities. Competitors challenge their driving skills on
spectacular asphalt stages in a setting of sun, sea, and
exquisite natural beauty. More than 30,000 local and
international motorsport fans gather in the heart of
historical Funchal for the super special stage before
following the rally into its demanding sinuous mountain
stages and micro-climates over three exciting days of
competition.
The stages of Rali Vinho da Madeira are held in the
hills and on the plateaux of the Island and are always
spectacular and attract many drivers to the island, as
this is a unique way of sharpening their driving skills.
The stages of Chão da Lagoa, Paúl and the breathtaking
descent of Encumeada are the highlights of the event
route. The short, 2.8 km long, opening super special
stage is held on the capital's streets with the pretty
bay of Funchal as its backdrop. That will be followed
this year by three
days of tough rallying, split into two legs, with 298.20
km of timed special stages and a total route distance of
898.59 kilometers.
