21.09.2003 AS RIVALS FALL BY THE WAYSIDE FIAT CLAIM THEIR FIRST ITALIAN TITLE IN 23 YEARS ON THE RALLYE COSTA SMERALDA 

No-one expected such result from the ninth round of the Italian Rally Championship: the gravel stages of Sassari's province were perfect ground for all wheel drive production cars and the rally results confirmed that forecast. However the Fiat Punto Super1600 drivers were able to bring their cars safely to the finish line having maintained a quick enough pace pace to score precious points for the national series.

Gianluigi Galli, at the wheel of the Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII gr.N, after a full season with the Fiat Punto Rally Super1600 in the Junior World Rally Championship, rocked the leaderboard with times almost at the pace of the best WRC drivers. The performance of the Livigno based driver was so strong that many are betting on him for the third vacant seat in the official Mitsubishi WRC team, which plans to return in the World series with Lancer Evo VIII WRC in 2004, after taking a sabbatical this year.

The key moment of the event for the Fiat title bid, however, was determined by an unlucky episode for the Subaru Impreza STi gr.N driven by Piero Longhi, the real challenger for the Italian crown. During the last stage of the first leg the Impreza suffered a suspension arm failure, which forced him to retire and leaving important 20 points in the dust. His retirement all but ends the rush for the Italian Rally Championship, although the Turinese driver has still a mathematical chance to surpass the Fiat drivers in the last round.

The final standings of Costa Smeralda, see the WRC drivers mixing up with the gr.N drivers: gravel tracks dictate the rule that the all wheels traction cars will easily outperform the two wheel drive Super1600 runners. But a number of top finishers, including winner, Harri Rovanpera are not registered to score points in the Italian series, allowing the Punto brigade to claim a healthy slice of points, despite finishing outside the top ten.

The scoreboard gives Paolo Andreucci and Giandomenico Basso respectively 8 and 4 points which allows them to hand Fiat the title. Fiat, through its satellite development team N Technology, developed the best Super1600 technology for them, while Renato Travaglia's Peugeot 206 Super1600 and other drivers at the wheels of Renault Clios, Citroen Saxos, and Opel Corsas were unable to match them.

Only one verdict is still to be unveiled, but it seems almost clear it will be a question between the two Fiat drivers, Giandomenico Basso and Paolo Andreucci, who will fight it out for the driver's title between themselves on the last round of the series, the Rally Adriatico in mid October.

Final classification of Rally Costa Smeralda:

1 Rovanpera-Pietilanen (Peugeot 206 WRC) 2:20'47"4
2 Navarra -Fedeli (Subaru Impreza WRC) 53"0
3 Galli-Bioletti (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VII gr. N) 2'38"3
4 Grossi-Pavesi (Ford Focus WRC) 5'04"0
5 Cantamessa-Capolongo (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VII gr. N) 6'49"3
6 Rossetti-De Luis (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VI gr.N) 9'57"2
7 Fiorio-Brambilla (Subaru Impreza STi gr.N) 10'05"6
8 Vita-Girelli (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VII gr. N) 10'31"0
9 Pianezzola-Zanatta (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VII gr. N) 10'34"9
10 De Dominicis-Bernacchini (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VI gr. N)  11'24"1
11 Eugeni-Businaro (Subaru Impreza STi gr.N) 11'49"6
12 Andreucci-Andreussi (Fiat Punto Super1600) 11'57"3
13 Gatti-Granai (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VII gr. N) 12'10"0
14 Travaglia-Zanella (Fiat Punto Super1600) 12'50"2
15 Basso-Guglielmini (Fiat Punto Super1600) 14'53"5

Drivers Italian Rally Championship after Rally Costa Smeralda (9th of 10 rounds):

1 Basso pt.94
2 Andreucci pt.86
3 Longhi pt.75
3 Travaglia pt.64

Constructors Italian Rally Championship after Rally Costa Smeralda (9th of 10 rounds):

1 Fiat pt.130 (Italian Rally Champion)
2 Subaru pt.94
3 Mitsubishi pt.81

by Marco Tenuti

Report provided courtesy of PuntoPower ( www.puntopower.com ). Photo courtesy Photocris. ©2003 text: PuntoPower, image: Photocris.