This year's edition of the Gumball 3000 Rally got underway from London yesterday afternoon and a new Italian sportscar has joined the ranks of exotica on this annual mad dash across Europe - the Maserati Quattroporte. The car - running at no 01 - is being driven by pop star and car enthusiast Jay Kay. under the banner of the Adidas Originals team on the 8 day 3000 mile round trip.

Jay Kay's team mate is US hip hop artist Xzibit who has recently been more used to picking up barely road worthy wrecks in need of serious repair as the star of hit MTV show Pimp My Ride. For the Gumball 3000 he has got behind the wheel of an altogether different type of car - the Lamborghini Gallardo, running at no 01. A third Adidas-liveried car is also another member of the Trident stable - 'Playmates' Giuliana Marino and Agnieszka Hendel are behind the wheel of the number 03 GrandSport.

The 2007 rally saw 120 cars departing from the starting line in London yesterday, and before they return to take the chequered flag on Pall Mall on the 5th May the rally will have left 17 countries across Europe in its wake. The route takes in major cities, crosses old cold war borders and even ventures into Asia, stopping only to have a good time.

To celebrate their partnership with the Gumball 3000, Adidas have produced a footwear and apparel collection, exclusively available in Foot Locker stores. The footwear collection comprises of six shoes including the premium Factory Range produced with luxurious leather uppers and featuring a signature repeat print combining the Adidas originals Trefoil and the Gumball logo. Accompanying apparel includes tracksuit tops inspired by retro rally overalls, Gumball 3000 print t-shirts, polo shirts and caps. A key chain wallet completes the collection.
 

The cars and crews gathered in Pall Mall yesterday afternoon before being flagged away to start their adventure at 4pm. From London the array of exotic cars headed for the planned Amsterdam checkpoint, travelling via the Eurotunnel and through Belgium. Today has seen the crews heading for Hahn airport near Frankfurt where the cars were loaded onto two huge Antanov planes to be air freighted to Istanbul. However a big presence on the roads by the German police saw many of the cars being impounded, mostly for speeding offences.

Tomorrow the remaining teams will travel from the Turkish capital Istanbul to a checkpoint at Thessaloniki in Greece and then on to Athens. The next day (2nd May) will see the crews heading to Tirana in Albania; then from Tirana to Dubrovnik and on to Bratislava (3rd May); to Prague and then Berlin (4th May) while the final day of the Gumball 3000 (5th May) will take the survivors through Holland, Belgium, France and at last back to the UK to the finish line in Whitehall Place, London.