•Third place overall and victory in the R-GT class for Andrea Nucita (ITA) and Marco Vozzo (ITA) in the Rally Zelezniki in Slovenia.
•Andrea Modanesi (ITA) and Roberto Mometti (ITA) prove their dirt road prowess by winning the R-GT in the Rally San Marino.
The Abarth 124 rally is proving increasingly competitive at all levels and last weekend it delivered an excellent third place overall and a victory in the R-GT class in the Rally Zelezniki, for the Slovenian Championship.
There's no sign of a break in the car's R-GT winning streak, as last weekend it also enabled up-and-coming young driver Andrea Modanesi (ITA), with Roberto Mometti (ITA), to win the class in the Rally San Marino, valid for the Italian Championship.
A total number of 17 R-GT victories have been achieved this season so far by Abarth 124 rally drivers in 8 different national championships.
Nucita-Vozzo's win in Slovenia was underlined by a thrilling third place overall, achieved in a race where the line-up also included approximately ten latest-generation four-wheel drive cars. The route, on typical Alpine roads, with climbs, descents and hairpin after hairpin, highlighted the Abarth 124 rally's handling and speed, enabling the Italian driver to record the best time overall in one of the rally's longest special stages.
Andrea Nucita said 'In my view, this second top-three finish confirms the Abarth 124 rally's speed on difficult courses like this weekend's long climbs and treacherous descents. They didn't create any problems for our car, and by achieving top speeds we were able to perform very well in the time trials, actually coming out faster than four-wheel drive cars.'
For Nucita, this race also provided practice in the run-up to the forthcoming Rally di Roma Capitale, to be held from 20 to 22 July, valid for the FIA R-GT Cup, the GT World Championship. After the first two races (the Rallye de Montecarlo and the Tour de Corse), 4 Abarth 124 rally cars occupy the top 4 places in the championship standings, with Frenchman Raphael Astier leading, ahead of Nucita.
From the fast tarmac roads of the Slovenian Alps to the winding dirt roads of the Rally San Marino, the Abarth 124 rally also allows younger drivers to gain experience in the class. In the fifth race in the Italian Rally Championship, Andrea Modanesi (ITA), partnered by Marco Vozzo (ITA), tackled a dirt road course for the first time in his racing career, and managed to finish at the top of the R-GT rankings.
Andrea Modanesi said 'It was a very tough race, but the heat, the dust and the uneven surfaces along the route didn't present any problem for the reliability of the Abarth 124 rally, I was able to gain valuable experience on low-grip surfaces, which require a different driving style from the one used on tarmac'. The Abarth 124 rally's rear-wheel drive offered a spectacular show on the humps and hair-pins of the San Marino Rally.
There was also excitement in the Rally Bohemia, valid for the Czech Republic Championship, where Martin Rada (CZE) and Jaroslav Jugas (CZE), in the Abarth 124 rally of the Agrotec Abarth Czech Team, performed well in the early stages of the race but were then forced to retire. They will be able to make up for this at the forthcoming Barum Czech Rally Zlin, in August which is also valid for the FIA R-GT Cup, when they will be able to support the other Abarth drivers taking part in the international series.
Photo credit: Abarth
posted on conceptcarz.com
•Martin Rada (CZE) and Jaroslav Jugas (CZE) delivered a spectacular performance in the Rally Bohemia, in the Czech Republic.
In the Slovenian Championship, Nucita, who drives for the Bernini Rally team, had already won the R-GT class and finished third overall in the season-opening Rally Vipavska, delighting the large crowds with his spectacular driving style in the Abarth 124 rally.
posted on conceptcarz.com
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