Pirelli at the Rally of Portugal
Milan, 10 March 2000 - Pirelli flies on to Portugal for the 4th round of the World Rally Championship (March 16-19) from a brilliant result on the gravel of Kenya's Safari Rally, Pirelli's 114th success in the championship. It was an extremely positive result, not only because of the 1-2 result for the Subaru-Pirelli Imprezas of Richard Burns and Juha Kankkunen, the third place achieved by SEAT-Pirelli's Didier Auriol and Pirelli's total domination of the top three Group N places but also because of the extreme durability of the PZero range of gravel tyres. Only Pirelli survived Kenya with very few punctures (Subaru suffered none at all) despite not using the EMI anti-deflation system on the rough roads and in extremely high temperatures. This result reflected the PZero tyres' high technical qualities and renowned durability.
Now the championship returns to Europe and the gravel stages that form the heart of the competition. In reality there are two distinct types of gravel in Portugal. One is very hard and demanding for tyres, typified by the stages in the Arganil region. The other is sandy and much faster making traction and driveability crucial. If it is raining then the event can change dramatically. Pirelli aims to counter these demands with two tread types, K and KM. Both have contributed significantly to Pirelli's five wins from the last seven gravel rallies of 1999.
Pirelli has won many times in Portugal, starting in the 1970s with Fiat and Lancia before moving through Toyota and in more recent times with the Subarus of Carlos Sainz (1995) and Colin McRae (1998). This time again the expectations are high, helped by the expected debut of the new Subaru Impreza in Portugal.
Pirelli arrives in Portugal with a PZero gravel range of around 1500 tyres in two tread patterns as demanded by the new FIA regulations for gravel events (with the exception of the Safari). The Portuguese PZero range is the result of a major test programme carried out by both Subaru and SEAT in recent months.
TWO TREADS FOR PORTUGAL
About 1500 tyres, the fruit of the evolutions following recent gravel tests, will be the weaponry available to Pirelli drivers in Portugal. This time the tyres will all be equipped with the latest generation EMI anti-deflation system.
This year's technical regulations demand that each tyre supplier makes available only two tread patterns for gravel events, each nominated to - and approved by - the FIA. Within these patterns, the number of compounds remains free.
This is the PZero range for Portugal in detail:
FOR HARD GRAVEL...
K: Size 205/65-15
Type: A tyre for hard gravel
Compound options: Three: Step 2, 4 and 6
Description This tyre is used on very hard and compact gravel. The hard compound Step 2 is used in the dry, Step 4 when damp or wet and Step 6 when temperatures are below 10 degrees Centigrade.
FOR SOFT AND SANDY GRAVEL...
KM: Size 205/65-15
Type: A tyre for soft and sandy gravel
Compound options: Three: Step 2, 4 and 6
Description This tyre will be used on soft or sandy gravel. The different compunds will be used in the same different ways as in the K pattern tyre.
NOTE: The higher the compound number, the softer the tyre.
THE 11-STRONG PIRELLI TEAM FOR PORTUGAL
2 Subaru Impreza WRC Burns-Reid and Kankkunen-Repo 3 SEAT Cordoba WRC Auriol-Giraudet, Gardemeister- Lukander and Rovanpera-Pietilainen 6 Mitsubishi Lancer Gr.N Stvhl, Trelles, Sanchez, Menzi, Pozzo, Galli
Pirelli will also be supporting other teams not contesting the World Championship
OUR DRIVERS SAID...
JUHA KANKKUNEN
We will have the new Subaru for Portugal so that is quite exciting and will give us even more performance. On the tyre front there shouldn't be any real problems for us, Pirelli has good tyres for both dry and wet conditions. I won't be worried whatever the weather.
RICHARD BURNS
There's no such thing as an easy event but Portugal shouldn't be a problem. There are a lot of new things; a new car and some new tyre developments. We've made big steps forward and we'll be using similar tyres to those in Australia which worked very well of course. There's a big difference between a wet or a dry Portugal but we are well covered with Pirelli.
DIDIER AURIOL
Portugal is an event I enjoy but again it's a new challenge for me with this new car! It's not one of the most difficult events and every time I have finished it's been in the top three. It's quite an easy event if it's dry but it's a lot harder when it's wet, especially around Arganil where you can also have fog in the mornings.
TONI GARDEMEISTER
I don't know Portugal very well. Last year was the first time I have competed there and I retired quite early so I've got some things to learn. The stages can be quite rough and so we will rely a lot on Pirelli's EMI anti-deflation system to avoid punctures.
11 MORE ROUNDS TO... THE END OF THE WORLD
Monte Carlo 20-22 January Asphalt/snow/ice
Richard Burns (Subaru-Pirelli) was in second place and chasing a possible victory when his car failed to start the second day. Juha Kankkunen (Subaru-Pirelli) finished third after setting a stunning fastest time on Sisteron while SEAT-Pirelli's young Finn Toni Gardemeister was acclaimed as a star of the rally in fourth.
Sweden 10-13 February Snow/ice/gravel
Burns claimed a few stage wins as well as being extremely competitive during the first leg and was looking to challenge the leader. Unfortunately the high speeds of the event did not allow the chasing drivers to significantly cut the leader's advantage. Subaru finished fifth and sixth while SEAT suffered a few technical problems in tenth.
Safari 24-27 February Gravel
No punctures for Subaru as Pirelli dominated the event from start to finish. Burns won from Kankkunen while Didier Auriol was third for SEAT-Pirelli. Pirelli enjoyed absolute domination in Group N. In a hard event from a technical point of view the durability of the PZero range was the key to Pirelli's success.
Portugal 16-19 March Gravel
Catalunya 30 March-2 April Asphalt
Argentina 11-14 May Gravel
Acropolis 8-11 June Gravel
New Zealand 13-16 July Gravel
Finland 17-20 August Gravel
China 7-10 September Gravel
Corsica 28 September-1 October Asphalt
San Remo 12-15 October Asphalt
Australia 9-12 November Gravel
Great Britain 23-26 November Gravel