"It’s a tough rally. They are very, very rocky and hard roads, and it is very fast in places too. On a lot of the stages, if you’re off line very slightly, you’ll lose a wheel instantly", warned Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart team manager George Donaldson. "There are always lots of water splashes as well ­ far more than on any other rally. The rally is being held earlier this year and it has the potential of very changeable weather, which will probably include fog and rain.

"Tommi is in a very good frame of mind at the moment and I think he showed immense strength of character when he came third in Catalunya. Argentina is one of his strongest events and he’s certainly a potential winner. We’re on a building process with Freddy. He’s had some good stage times and good results this year, and I think he could put in a really good performance here", he added.

Mitsubishi Motors drivers are also confident of maintaining their phenomenal record of success in the Group N production car class. Lancer Evolutions and Carisma GTs have an unbroken and unprecedented run of victories that spans 18 rallies, and most of Latin America’s top drivers will be at the wheel of Mitsubishis.

The Rally of Argentina provides a distinct contrast to the previous round of the series in Catalunya. Rough and rocky, it is very fast in places, but it is also one of the most mountainous events on the calendar, with twisty stages climbing to 2000 metres in the foothills of the Andes.

Argentine drivers have every chance of success and while the class is sure to be hotly fought, one of the favourites will be Group N World Championship leader and Catalan winner Gabriel Pozzo, driving a Lancer Evolution.

"This is a very important rally for me. We have had some good results in the World Championship and it is nice to be leading, but to win here would be very special indeed", Pozzo said.

One of his closest rivals should be new Argentine sensation Marcos Ligato. Like Pozzo, he is in his early 20s, but he was one of the pace setters in Portugal in his Lancer Evolution and has made a strong impression in his first season outside his homeland.

"This has been an amazing year for me already, but this will be different. It will be easier, because I am driving at home, but there will be a lot more pressure. I think it will be a very exciting rally", Ligato commented.

The man to beat could well be Uruguay’s Gustavo Trelles. The four-times Group N World Champion is also driving a Lancer Evolution and has more experience than most of his rivals combined.

"I know this rally very well, but of course it will not be easy to beat the local drivers here. They will have a lot of support, but we will just have to try our best and I think we can push them a little",Trelles stated.

Other potential front runners include Juan Pablo Raies and Luis Companc, two more local drivers who have also chosen Lancer Evolutions, and Luca Baldini in a Carisma GT. Mitsubishis are as usual much the most popular choice in the Group N class.

The rally takes place on May 3-6 and covers 1463 kilometres. It offers 21 special stages totalling 400 kilometres, with two new stages, one in the first and one in the third leg. The first leg, which includes 151 kilometres of stages, begins with a pair of crowd-pleasing stages on a specially constructed track in Villa Carlos Paz, with an additional six tests to the north of Cordoba. The second leg is centred on Santa Rosa de Calamuchita to the south of Cordoba. It includes seven stages, covering 130 kilometres. The third leg is the shortest, with 118 stage kilometres, but is potentially one of the toughest, for among the six stages to the west are classics such as El Condor and Giulio Cesare.