01.06.2004 With the Super1600 win in sight, Paolo Andreucci retired for the first time this season on the San Marino Rally when he rolled his Fiat Punto on the penultimate stage

An unlucky event for current Italian champion, Paolo Andreucci, who was forced to withdraw for the first time this season in the San Marino Rally when his car turned over in the penultimate special stage on Sunday.

Up to that point the Fiat Punto Abarth driver had held the lead in the Super 1600 category ahead of Renato Travaglia in a Peugeot. And so the latter went on to win followed by Giandomenico Basso in another Fiat Punto Abarth, who had lost time during the first leg due to a puncture.

In the Fiat Punto Abarth Trophy the winner was Stefano Bizzarri, ahead of his young rival, Matteo Gamba.

Pace setter Alessandro Bettega went off the road and was forced to withdraw after holding the lead right up to the seventh special section. The overall Trophy standings now see Bizzarri in the lead with 26 points, followed by Gamba, also first in the Under 27 category, on 22 and Bettega with 9.

The San Marino Rally, run over dirt roads, was won by Navarra (Subaru), ahead of Aghini (Mitsubishi) and Longhi (Subaru). Navarra now leads the Italian Championship with 68 points, followed by Longhi (57), Andreucci (47), Basso and Cantamessa (34), while the standings in the Manufacturers Championship see Subaru with 87 points, Fiat 56, Mitsubishi 50.

The next round of the Italian Rally Championship will be the Salento Rally scheduled for June 18-19th in Lecce.

Mud and a treacherous surface marked the third event in the 2004 Fiat Stilo Abarth Trophy, the San Marino Rally that saw young Emilia driver Davide Medici take first place ahead of Andrea Perego from Lombardy, who thanks to this result now leads the overall standings in the Trophy Under 25 category.

The event saw Medici and Perego engaged in a thrilling duel, with Perego taking the lead in the early stages of the race. Then in the third special section he made a mistake in choosing the wrong tyres and Medici moved into the lead. It was an unlucky day for Christian Chemin, who was held up in the early stages with electrical problems and was then forced to withdraw during the fourth special section.

The next round of the Fiat Stilo Abarth Trophy will also be the Salento Rally.

San Marino Rally, Result: 1. Medici-Benedetti in 1 hour 23'16.5"; 2. Perego-Vischioni +7.9"; 3. Feltrami-Boero +2'8.9"; 4. Pienotti-Raffaelli +2'18.7"; 5. Romano-Valmassoi +3'35.6".

Fiat Stilo Abarth Trophy, Overall standings: 1. Perego 43 points; 2. Chemin 35; 3. Pierotti 35; 4. Medici 32; 5. Romano 26; 6. Beltrami 18; 7. Barbato 12; 8. Aparo 8; 9. Bordignon 8.

Under 25 Category: 1. Perego 43 points; 2. Chemin 35; 3. Medici 32; 4. Bordignon 8; 5. Fanari 3.