Swedish Rally: New Technical Upgrade Makes Pirelli Candidate for Victory

Milan, 30 January 2006 - In Sweden, where Petter Solberg and his Subaru Impreza triumphed last year, Pirelli is going for a top result, armed with further technological developments of its studded tyres. For the Scandinavian snow, Pirelli Competizioni will offer its leading drivers an evolution of the revolutionary development launched in Sweden in 2005 and which consists of vulcanizing the studs directly into the tyres rather than inserting them after the P Zero tyres have been produced. As well as the Subaru Impreza WRCs of Solberg and Chris Atkinson, Pirelli P Zeros will be fitted to a number of other cars aiming for victory in Sweden. Among them are the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX of Gigi Galli and Daniel Carlsson, often bearer of the works Peugeot team last year. In addition, Pirelli's technicians will also provide tyres and service for several Group N entries. They include the evergreen Stig Blomqvist, who has won the Swedish Rally seven times, and who is competing in the event for the 40th time. An exceptional milestone for which Pirelli Competizioni has the honor of supporting this landmark undertaking by the great Stig, the 1984 world champion and a true living legend in international rallying. The Swedish rally is the only event in the entire calendar held on gravel's surfaces primarily covered with snow or ice and comprises 19 special stages in the Karlstad area and Hagfors. For this second round in the world championship, Pirelli Competizioni will have a range of tyres substantially similar to those used during the 2005 Swedish Rally. The new type studs developed by the Milan manufacturer's technicians have shown they are able to keep the tyre's tread more rigid and give the driver an ideal 'feel' for steering reaction, because the tyre is more monolithic: it has less tendency to vibrate or make unwanted movements. This new development for the well tried and tested Pirelli P Zero range will certainly be an extremely effective weapon for the Subaru and Mitsubishi teams, both of whom are aiming for victory. Explains Pirelli Competizioni Rally Manager Mario Isola, "Adopting this new stud for an already highly competitive range of tyres means we have products able to support our top teams in the best possible way. The high technological standards inherent in this new refinement are further confirmation of Pirelli's commitment to road racing and the constant development carried out non-stop by our technicians throughout the year to ensure our teams have the tyres that provide them with the highest level of competitiveness". For more information and pictures on Pirelli's motorsport activities visit: www.pirellicompetizioni.com