Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart is venturing into unknown territory when it contests the Cyprus Rally, the tenth round of the 2000 FIA World Rally Championship. It is the first time the event has qualified for the World Championship and therefore very few drivers or teams, including Finland's Tommi Makinen, driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, and Belgium's Freddy Loix, in a Mitsubishi Carisma GT, know exactly what to expect.

Cyprus is best known as a holiday destination, but while the tourists savour the beaches and the fine weather, there will be no rest for the top drivers when they visit the beautiful island in the eastern Mediterranean. They can expect to encounter dust, rocks and intense heat, much as they do on the Acropolis Rally in Greece. The fact that many of the stages, which snake their way through the forests of the Troodos Mountains, are exceptionally twisty will make the rally even more demanding. Indeed, the average speed is likely to be lower than on any other World Championship round. Crews will need to be physically fit to cope with searing temperatures likely to exceed 30 degrees Celsius, but they are sure of a generous welcome on the island. The Cyprus Rally previously formed part of the European Rally Championship and is renowned for its high standards of organisation.

In fact, Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart does have a little previous experience to draw on. Team director Andrew Cowan finished third in 1980 with a Mitsubishi Lancer and team manager Phil Short was the winning co-driver in 1987.

Four-times World Champion Tommi Makinen, co-driven by fellow Finn Risto Mannisenmaki, will be making his first visit to Cyprus in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, but sees it as an ideal opportunity to regain winning form.

"I know a little bit what to expect, because we did some testing in July. It is incredibly twisty and I think it will be a very difficult rally, and very hard for the cars. You don't know what can happen, but I think we have a good chance to win," Makinen stated.

Freddy Loix and Sven Smeets are also new to Cyprus, but are looking forward to the challenge and hoping to exploit the Carisma GT's reliability to maximum effect.

"It is not as rough as Greece, but the roads are very tight and very slippery in places too. I am sure it will be a very interesting rally with some surprises and for sure you will have to look after the car a little bit," Loix predicted.

Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Driver - Tommi Makinen (Photo: '00 Rd.9 NESTE Rally Finland)

"Clearly there are similarities with Greece, but the roads are slower and more twisty and the temperatures are higher. It's certainly going to be harder on the car: I think there are going to be problems with overheating, tyre wear and suspension. Some of the stages are going to be fast, but some of them are classic, original Cyprus stages and very slow and twisty, and you're going to be struggling to average 60 km/h. The event is a bit of an unknown quantity at the moment and all the legs look pretty tough," said Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart team manager Phil Short who won the event himself as a co-driver in 1987.

"We are optimistic and I feel we should do well - we have a strong and reliable car. Tommi is World Champion of course and I think it will be easier for Freddy in that the rally is new to almost all the works drivers, so he shouldn't be at a disadvantage. We did three days of testing at the end of July and we're planning to do a confirmation test prior to the event itself," he added.

It will be no surprise if Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and Carisma GT drivers maintain their remarkable unbeaten record in the Group N production car class this season.

Fresh from his third place in Group N on the Rally Finland, Austria's Manfred Stohl, the Group N World Championship leader, will be one of the favourites in his Carisma GT, as he began his career on long, tough rallies such as the Safari.

"Cyprus is the kind of rally where you have to be careful and think about your driving. For me, the important thing is to look after your car and not take too many risks. It can be very hard on the engine as well as the suspension, because it will be so hot," Stohl predicted.

Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Driver - Freddy Loix (Photo: '00 Rd.9 NESTE Rally Finland)

There is a strong South American flavour to the entry, as Stohl's rivals include a trio of Lancer Evolutions, driven by four-times Group N World Champion Gustavo Trelles from Uruguay, and two promising Argentine drivers, Claudio Menzi and Gabriel Pozzo. All three have already won Group N on World Championship rallies for Mitsubishi this year and all of them should go well in such tough conditions.

"I am looking forward to this rally. I have not had so much luck recently and we need to win if we are going to catch Manfred, but we must also look after the car," Trelles commented.

"Cyprus will be a new experience not just for us, but most of the other drivers and I think that gives us a better chance in our first season outside Argentina," Pozzo said.

The established stars face plenty of tough regional opposition, including Cypriot hero and former winner Dimi Mavropoulos, Middle East Championship star Ron Cremen from Australia and another local star, Andreas Peratikos. All three of them drive Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions or Carisma GTs.

The rally runs from September 8-10 and is based in Limassol on the south coast. It covers 1,250 kilometres, with 23 stages totalling 348 kilometres. The first leg is the longest, plunging into the heart of the Troodos Mountains in the middle of the island. It includes nine stages, which cover 145 kilometres. The second leg is fought out in the same area and includes another run at the longest, 31-kilometre stage of the rally, with 114 kilometres of competitive driving altogether. The third and final leg is the shortest, with 88 kilometres of stages further to the east, but given the nature of the roads, the result could easily remain in doubt until the very end.