Andreucci and Pirelli chase down points on Rally del Friuli

Paolo Andreucci

Just three rounds of the Italian Rally Championship remain this year, all on asphalt, starting with the Rally del Friuli Venezia Giulia this weekend (which will be followed by the Rally di Roma Capitale and the Rally Due Valli). Multiple Italian champions Paolo Andreucci and Anna Andreussi are leading the standings in their Pirelli-equipped Peugeot 208 T16, having won three of the five Italian rounds held so far. Two more Pirelli-equipped Peugeots will be present on the Rally del Friuli this weekend, driven by Alessandro Perico and Michele Tassone. Currently, Pirelli leads both the overall and two-wheel drive championships on home territory. The rally: The event gets underway from Gemona, close to Udine, on Friday afternoon with a spectator superspecial and then takes in 10 more stages before the finish on Sunday afternoon. There is also a well-known historic section on the rally. The route: The rally is run entirely on tricky and technical asphalt. The first leg contains shorter stages (between seven and 15 kilometres) while the second leg features longer stages (up to 22 kilometres). The winners: The last two editions of the Rally del Friuli have been won by Pirelli ace Paolo Andreucci. He also holds the absolute record for the number of wins on the event, with a total of four. Tyres used: The Pirelli drivers will have the P Zero RK family of asphalt rally tyres at their disposal, in sizes ranging from 14 to 18 inches (as used by the top cars). Three compounds are available: RK5A (hard), RK7B (medium) and RKW7A (for damp or wet asphalt). The historic cars will use Pirelli’s P7 Corsa Classic tyres. Quotes Paolo Andreucci: “With the way that the points are allocated now, the unlucky results I’ve had from the last two rallies have more or less cancelled out my advantage: even though we’ve won three rallies so far this year and my key rivals have won one each. So now it’s down to me to fight back by aiming for my third consecutive win on the Rally del Friuli. It’s not going to be easy, but I know that I can really count on the performance of my Pirelli P Zero tyres, which proved to be decisive on the last two occasions that I won there.”

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