Monza Rally Show 2009 – Rossi leads after Friday’s opening two tests

Two of the nine planned special stages were run yesterday to open the thirtieth edition of the Monza Rally Show.

The Skoda Fabia of Piero Longhi (with Luca Cassol as co-driver) was the car which started the 30° edition of the Monza Rally Show, the rally event which has been running since 1978. Five more stages will be competed today, while the last two stages will take place on Sunday morning. On Sunday, from 2 p.m., the “Master Show”, spectacular knockout stage, will be run on a track built along the start/finish straight.

Among the protagonists, was two-time rally world champion Marcus Gronholm, with Timo Rautiainen as co-driver, in a Subaru Impreza WRC S14; Rinaldo Capello, winner of the 2008 Monza Rally Show, with Luigi Pirollo as co-driver, on rally world champion car, the Citroen C4; Valentino Rossi on Ford Focus, Carlo Cassina as co-driver.

At the race, Luca Rossetti (Abarth Grande Punto), Alex Caffi (Skoda Fabia), Paolo Andreucci (Peugeot 207), Andrea Dallavilla (Peugeot 207), Felice Re (Citroen C4), Andrea Navarra, Fabio Babini e Luca Cantamessa (Subaru Impreza), Alessandro Perico e Tobia Cavallini (Citroen Xsara), Mauro Trentin (Ford Focus), Mirco Virag (Citroen Xsara), Corrado Fontana (Peugeot 307), Stefano D’Aste (Lotus Exige).

From Motorcycle Championship, there was also Loris Capirossi, Marco Simoncelli, Mattia Pasini, Manuel Poggiali (co-driver of Denis Colombini on Peugeout 207), the official Championship Italia 1 speaker Guido Meda on Abarth Grande Punto, with his brother Pietro as co-driver; Yamaha Team Manager Davide Brivio, with his brother Roberto on Ford Focus; Alessio Saluccio, best friend of Valentino Rossi, on Ford Focus. Cycling is well represented by Paolo Bettini, with co-driver the coach of the Italian cycling team Franco Ballerini; Filippo Pozzato (co-driver of Giuseppe Attardo on Peugeot 207); Sergey Ivanov (co-driver of Paolo Necchi on Peugeot 207). Moreover, the ski champion Peter Fill, co-driver of Marino Gaiardoni on Subaru Impreza; the swimming champion Leonardo Tumiotto, co-driver of Daniele Collomb on Mitsubishi Lancer; the senator Cesarino Monti, co-driver on Mitsubishi Lancer driven by his son Andrea; Graziano Rossi on Ford Mustang.

After last year result for the contest organized to win the suit used by Valentino Rossi at the Monza Rally Show, the Autodrome of Monza present the initiative once more, raffling off the helmet used by the nine-time motorcycle champion. The contest is for all the spectators who will attend the event on Sunday, the 29th November. Together with the purchase of the entrance ticket (14 euros), the spectators receive a postcard to fill in and post in a box in the Exhibition Area, situated in the paddock, within 13 a.m. Draw of the winning ticket will take place before the beginning of the Master Show, planned at 2 p.m.

30. Monza Rally Show Results after SS2

1. Valentino Rossi/Carlo Cassina (I) Ford Focus RS WRC 08 9.42,0
2. Rinaldo Capello/Luigi Pirollo (I) Citroen C4 WRC +4,8
3. Felice Re/Mara Bariani (I) Citroen C4 WRC +7,7
4. Piero Longhi/Luca Cassol (I) Skoda Fabia WRC +10,0
5. Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautainen (FIN) Subaru Impreza WRC S14 +10,6
6. Corrado Fontana/Giovanni Monti (I) Peugeot 307 WRC +11,3
7. Luca Cantamessa/Lisa Bollito (I) Subaru Impreza WRC S12 +12,9
8. Fabio Babini/Giovanni Bernacchini (I) Subaru Impreza WRC S12 +13,4
9. Andrea Aghini/Attilio Rossi (I) Ford Focus RS WRC 07 +14,0
10. Andrea Navarra/Massimiliano Cerrari (I) Subaru Impreza WRC S14 +17,3

source: rallylink.it