TAP Rallye de Portugal 2000
Thursday 16 March
COMMUNIQUE 2

MARLBORO MITSUBISHI RALLIART ON ALL-OUT ASSAULT
AND MITSUBISHI HOLDS TOP SEVEN IN GROUP N

The 2000 Rally of Portugal started in earnest this afternoon when the FIA world Rally Championship contenders raced head to head over the purpose-built 3.20 kilometre rally cross circuit at Baltar. Split by mere seconds over this short super special stage, Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart driver Tommi Makinen overnights in 20th position with team-mate Freddy Loix 19th before the first real day of competition begins on Friday morning.

The Portuguese are passionate rally fans and, in typical fashion, turned out in their thousands, some even climbing trees to find the best vantage point from which to watch the fast and furious action. Dry conditions, mixed with late afternoon temperatures in the mid-twenties added to the challenge; low sun and billowing dust blinding the drivers as they powered around the tight and twisty circuit.

Four-times World Rally Champion and Mitsubishi Lancer driver Tommi Makinen is a mere five seconds adrift of early leader Marcus Gronholm in the Peugeot but, with three days of heated competition ahead them, he and co-driver Risto Mannisenmaki have no reason to be concerned about their 20th position.

"On a circuit like this, where you are racing side by side, a lot of dust and stones get thrown up and we have many small chips and a break in the windscreen now", said Makinen. "I made a mistake because I thought we were only doing one lap of the circuit, not two, which is why we lost some time. I am now looking forward to the start of the real Portuguese stages - five seconds is nothing to be concerned about at all and I am confident we will move quickly up the leaderboard as soon as we get into the longer stages tomorrow".

Team-mates Freddy Loix and Sven Smeets, driving the Carisma GT, hold one position higher and, like the Finns, suffered with visibility problems. "The stage was fun but I was completely blinded by the sun and dust from the other car in the first corner. Being in the outside lane was a disadvantage there - it was just like someone dumping sand on the windscreen, I couldn’t see a thing".

Mitsubishi has a superb record in the Group N production category, in which the Lancer Evolution and the Carisma GT are very much the cars to beat. Much the same as in each of the three previous rounds, Mitsubishi drivers have instantly set the pace. World Championship leader Manfred Stohl forged into an immediate lead with Spanish Champion Jesus Puras hot on his heels. Germany’s Uwe Nittel holds third in the category and Pedro Leal leads the local drivers in fourth. Uruguay’s four-times World Champion Gustavo Trelles holds fifth with Gabriel Pozzo and Miguel Campos sixth and seventh respectively going into tomorrow’s long first full day.

"That stage was fun and it’s a good place to have four-wheel drive", commented Stohl. "It’s nice to be in the lead of course, but there is a long way to go and the important thing is to be leading on Sunday!"

The Rally of Portugal starts at 05:30 hrs (GMT) on Friday morning for a further ten special stages. The route, which encompasses 155 competitive kilometres, takes the crews to the northeast of Porto before returning to the rally headquarters at Matosinhos at 20:00 hrs.

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION AFTER SS 1