Rally: Italian Overall Championship debuts at Ciocco – Altri Sport

Just 12 kilometers were faced by the protagonists of the Sparco Italian Absolute Rally Championship on the first day of the 47th Il Ciocco and Valle del Serchio Rally, a first taste of the challenges that will enliven the inaugural round of the top Italian series. After three uncertain tests due to weather and conditions, Andrea Crugnola and Pietro Elia Ometto are once again in front of everyone, the reigning champions on FPF Sport’s Citroen C3 who have started 2024 on the best foot: the one that helped them last season crowned emperors of Ciar Sparco. The driver from Varese devoured the asphalt around the “Il Ciocco” estate, imposing himself in all three scheduled special stages – “Pegnana”, “Il Ciocco ACI Sport live”, “Monteceneri” – and also taking home the first points tricolors of the power stage. In the morning in Garfagnana Crugnola had also distinguished himself in the first qualifying stage of the season, the qualifying test useful for deciding the starting order for Saturday which had sparked Ciar Sparco’s action out of nowhere; the departure in the medieval heart of Lucca, from the Antico Caffè delle Mura, was the perfect opening for a new season full of expectation. However, the Citroen standard-bearer gained at the end of the day was not a huge advantage, in fact only 3.4″, but given the declarations these performances may scare everyone a little: “I didn’t do a perfect test, I could have given more”.


Behind the champion, Simone Campedelli seemed excited and focused on a very fast pace, navigated by Tania Canton, aboard the Skoda Fabia RS of Step Five Motorsport. The winner of two Cira titles, upon his return to the Assoluto, immediately demonstrated that he is an asphalt specialist, quickly finding the feeling to be a candidate as Crugnola’s main antagonist. More cautious, however, is Giandomenico Basso, who, bringing the new Toyota GR Yaris to its debut dressed in the official colors of the Gazoo Racing Team, aimed, together with the expert and trusted navigator Lorenzo Granai, to discover and understand the car more than to look for the time; yet, despite these first kilometers being a study, the 4-time Italian champion and 2-time European champion had an excellent pace, placing third after the first three tests.

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2024-03-16 08:34:52
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