Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart driver Tommi Makinen will be aiming for his third successive victory on the Sanremo Rally, the 12th round of the 2000 FIA World Rally Championship and the final tarmac event of the season. Team-mate Freddy Loix, driving a Mitsubishi Carisma GT, finished just off the podium in fourth place last year and is also hoping for a strong finish.

Italy's round of the World Championship will be fought out on the highly demanding asphalt roads in the Liguria mountains, a few kilometres from the attractive seaside resort of Sanremo. For 2000 the rally will have a very different look to it, blending tradition and innovation. The organisers are planning a "rally on a racetrack" designed to simplify practising and to cater for the vast crowds of highly enthusiastic spectators drawn from all corners of Italy. The ultra-compact route covers two different stages per day, most of them run in one direction in the morning and the opposite direction in the afternoon. Teams will be based in a single Sanremo service area for the three days of fierce competition

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart T. Makinen / R. Mannisenmaki (Photo: '00 Rd.10 Cyprus Rally)

Tommi Makinen and fellow Finn Risto Mannisenmaki won in Italy in 1998 and 1999 and despite crashing out of the last event in Corsica, Makinen believes that the different nature of the Italian roads will give him a better chance.

"Sanremo is usually a very good rally for us, but there are a lot of fast cars against us and the competition seems to be very tight. There isn't a big difference between Sanremo and Corsica, but this next rally is a little bit faster, which is hopefully better for us," Makinen said. "Our choice of Michelin tyres was vital to our win in the changing conditions last year so I hope we can repeat those good decisions again."

Freddy Loix and Sven Smeets have put up some of their best World Championship performances on the Sanremo Rally and, while they also went off the road in Corsica, they are eager for a good result.

"Sanremo's stages are very nice and I think Tommi showed in Corsica that the Mitsubishi can still be quite fast. We know it will be difficult and the weather can be bad at this time of year, but we will try our best," Loix stated.

"Corsica was obviously a very disappointing rally for the team. However Tommi proved Mitsubishi was on the pace. We weren_t on the top Peugeot pace, but I think with specialised French drivers, we always felt they were going to be hard to beat in on their home event. Sanremo has been very good to us in the past and we are looking for another strong performance again. We aren't planning major changes to the cars, but a two day pre-event test should help Tommi and Freddy's confidence," said Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart team manager Phil Short.

Mitsubishi Carisma GT Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart F. Loix / S. Smeets (Photo: '00 Rd.10 Cyprus Rally)

"I think the reversing of stages during each leg will make the conditions quite dirty with gravel and leaves being pulled into the road. It may mean having to use a different line on some corners. Clearly a patch of gravel in the wrong place, as it could well be on the reverse trip, could cause problems for some crews," he added.

Mitsubishi Motors drivers are bidding to maintain their phenomenal unbeaten record in the Group N production category on the 12th round of the 2000 FIA World Rally Championship, Italy's Sanremo Rally. Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions and Carisma GTs feature strongly in a superb Group N entry, with World Championship contenders Manfred Stohl and Gustavo Trelles the likely front runners and former Sanremo Rally winner Andrea Aghini, who will drive a Ralliart Italy's Group A Carisma GT. Aghini, who has driven works Mitsubishis with notable success in the past, is sure to play a starring role on a rally he knows so well.

Part of the World Championship since its inception, the Sanremo Rally is one of the most prestigious rounds of the series. Held in north-western Italy, this year's route will be notably compact, consisting of just two different stretches of road each day, with most stages being run twice in each direction. It promises to give some of the atmosphere of a race and huge crowds can be expected to throng the twisty asphalt roads of the Ligurian mountains. The weather will be far from certain in late October and competitors may be greeted by bright sunshine or torrential rain.

Driving a Carisma GT, Austria's Manfred Stohl is the one man who can clinch a world title in Sanremo and he is full of confidence after extending his lead in similar conditions with a class victory on the recent Tour of Corsica.

"Sanremo is a bit different to Corsica. It_s tarmac of course and it can be tough for the brakes and the transmission, but it is a bit faster. We will need to be careful, because of the weather, and also it is still important for us to finish," he stated.

Four-times Group N World Champion Gustavo Trelles of Uruguay knows that he must win the category in Sanremo if he is to stand more than an outside chance of retaining his crown. The Lancer Evolution driver is looking forward to the challenge.

"It will very difficult to be World Champion now, but still we must try and I am sure we have some chance. There will be a lot of opposition, but somehow we have to win," he predicted.

No fewer than 22 drivers have entered Lancer Evolutions or Carisma GTs for the event and the championship contenders will face plenty of opposition. Local men Gianluigi Galli and former works driver Alex Fiorio are likely to pose the biggest threat, both driving Carisma GTs. Other potential front runners include Peruvian Ramon Ferreyros and Argentine stars Claudio Menzi and Gabriel Pozzo (who have both won Group N on World Championship rallies this year), all three driving Lancer Evolutions, along with Spain's Ignacio Sanfilippo.

"I am looking forward to this rally very much. So many rallies are new and difficult, but I think we have a better chance here," Galli commented.

The event covers 1,103 kilometres and takes place from October 20-22. It includes 17 special stages, covering 382 kilometres and is divided into three legs, all starting and finishing in Sanremo. The first leg consists of eight stages, totalling 144 kilometres, due north of Sanremo. The second promises to be much the hardest, for its seven stages cover 197 four of which exceed 37 kilometres. The last leg includes just two stages, covering 40 kilometres.