"I don’t know," replied Sordo when asked prior to the event if he will up the ante in Italy. "It’s always hard to say. It is true that I feel more confident with the car the more I drive it. The feeling is improving all the time and of course I tend to increase the speed. In Italy, I will try to set good times and to be consistent, but it is also a question of patience and driving without making mistakes."
Other entrants at the wheel of a WRC car include Gareth MacHale (Ford Focus), Gigi Galli (Pirelli-Bozian Peugeot 307),
Francois Duval (First Skoda Fabia WRC), Jussi Valimaki (Mitsubishi Lancer WRC), Kristian Sohlberg (Red Devil Atoyle Kazaz Subaru Impreza WRC), Jan Kopecky (Czech RT Skoda Fabia WRC) and Riccardo Errani (Skoda Octavia WRC). There will be 36 locals taking part, most noticeably of course Galli and Errani.
Galli is keen to get a good result as not only is this his home event, but it is also his last confirmed outing with the Pirelli backed 307.
"I am confident that I can repeat my top level performance in South America [when I finished third], thanks to my car-tyre-team combination, which has always enabled me to be competitive," said the former Mitsubishi works driver. "I think I can do well in the Sardinian round of the world championship, as I will be able to use the latest new developments from Pirelli Competizioni, produced expressly for the demanding loose surfaces on which we shall compete from Friday to Sunday."
Schedule:
The route has changed considerably with four brand new stages. Fifty-two per cent of the competitive distance is new as organisers have dropped some of the narrowest and most twisty tracks in favour of more flowing roads. In addition the single service park returns to the port area in Olbia at Cala Saccaia while Thursday's ceremonial start moves back to the exclusive coastal town of Porto Cervo. The opening day on the gravel roads of the Nuoro area contains one new stage while Saturday's leg, a mix of tests used in 2004 and 2005, includes the long Monte Cerno stage and the spectacular 'camel humps' jump. The final leg north of Olbia includes two new tests in the Gallura area which were formerly used on the Costa Smeralda Rally. All three legs comprise three stages used twice and the 18 tests cover 344.94km in a route of 1140.18km.
Hot tip:
Petter Solberg to win for
Subaru, capitalising on his start position on the road on day one, to establish a lead over
Sebastien Loeb and Marcus Gronholm, who will run first and second 'sweeping' away the loose gravel.
Last year:
Sebastien Loeb won the event in 2005 beating
Petter Solberg, by nearly a minute. Marcus Gronholm completed the podium, with
Markko Martin and
Toni Gardemeister fourth and fifth respectively. Several 'works' drivers' had problems - the most notable retirements were Harri Rovanpera and
Gigi Galli.
Mikko Hirvonen and Xavier Pons also retired, but they were not apart of a ‘works’ team in ‘05.
![Rally Italia Sardinia winners Sebastien Loeb and Daniel Elena on the podium with Petter Solberg and Phil Mills [2nd] and Marcus Gronholm and Timo Rautiainen [3rd]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/143183.jpg)
