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As
Fiat unveil the new Punto Super 2000 - a car
that is set take them back to the forefront of rallying - we
look at Brazil where Fiat are on course to claim an amazing
ninth consecutive national rally title.
Not
so well known in Europe, the major South American Rally
Championships' are always hugely popular with the
spectators, and are
becoming more competitive by the year. And while interest is
continuing to grow, so is media support, with
the regional Television Channels, motorsport magazines and
websites, all ramping up their coverage.
The most
prestigious South America series' is
the Brazilian Rally Championship, the
boasts the presence of several oficial works rally teams.
These include the crack Ted
Racing Team, which represents Fiat, and is running (and
constantly winning) with the locally-built Fiat Palio. This
car, competes
in the A6 category in the hands of
Luís Tedesco (the
remaining Brazilian Champion in this category) and Reinaldo Varela
(in the
hotly-fought N2 category). This duo both lead
their respective categories in the 2005 Brazilian Rally Championship,
facing their rivals - the Peugeot 206 and the
Brazilian-built
Volkswagen Gol.
After five
rallies, and with just three more events remaining in the 2005
season (the next round will take place at Ouro Branco,
Minas Gerais on the 17th September), both drivers have so far four victories in their categories, and lead their
championships with a margin of twenty points ahead of the
second place rivals in the table.
Both the Class A6 and N2 Fiat Palios are
prepared by top rally engineer
Francisco Omar Abadia, a very well-known name in
South America motorsport.
Based in the
city of Florianópolis (in the Santa Catarina Federal State)
the Ted Racing Team first began competing in 1982, kicking
off
their collaboration with Fiat in 1996, by developing a Fiat Palio 16V Rally, for the N2 category.
A few years later, the same car was developed for use in the A6 category.
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