The 63rd edition of the Rali Vinho da Madeira, an organization of the Club Sports da Madeira dating back to 1959, begins tomorrow with the Qualifying Rally. The competition, included in the FIA European Rally Trophy and in the national and regional championships of the sport, shall be held over three days, from 4th to 6th August. The first day includes the Qualifying and Shakedown and, in the evening, the first qualifying stage, the Avenida do Mar Super-Special, which returns to the programme after the pandemic.The remaining first stage will be disputed on Friday, August 5th, with eight special races, double round by Golf Course, more extensive and ending in Referta, Palheiro Ferreiro, timed section that again includes the passage in Chão da Lagoa, Boaventura and Cidade de Santana. The second and last stage will take place on Saturday, August 6th, with eight more special stages, with a double passing through Câmara de Lobos, Ponta do Sol, Ponta do Pargo and Rosário. In terms of sports, the competition promises a lot of emotion with a list of 61 participants marked by a great quality of vehicles and joining many sounding names of this sport. The Italian Simone Campedelli and the Spaniards Alejandro Cachon and Emma Falcon are joined by the drivers who usually fight for the first positions in the Portuguese championship of this specialty. Ricardo Teodósio, Armindo Araújo, Bruno Magalhães, José Pedro Fontes, Bernardo Sousa or Miguel Correia, among others. Winners of the last editions of the event, also the Madeirans Alexandre Camacho and Miguel Nunes are at the start and promise to keep the victory trophy "at home". In a long and high-quality entry list, there are many more reasons to follow closely the fight for the absolute first places as well as in other classes and particular competitions. The Rally party is back!

So far there have only been two races in the Iberian area of the 2022 FIA European Rally Trophy. The Sierra Morena Rally was held in Spain at the beginning of April and the Terras d'Aboboreira Rally in Portugal in the middle of the same month. No driver scored simultaneously in the two events. The league classification is, as such, led by the winners of the already completed races, Pepe Lopez in the surroundings of Cordoba and Miguel Correia in Amarante. The remaining positions are shared by Spanish and Portuguese drivers, with exactly the same points. After the Rali Vinho da Madeira, two races will take place in Spain, the Princesa de Asturias Rally, from 8 to 10 September, and the Nucia-Mediterranean Rally, on 4th and 5th November: FIA ERT IRT: 1st Pepe Lopez and Miguel Correia, 30; 3rd Ivan Ares and Armindo Araújo, 24; 5th Efren Llarena and Bruno Magalhães, 21; 7th Surhayen Pernia and José Pedro Fontes, 19; 9th Eduard Pons and Pedro Almeida, 17. 30 drivers are classified.

SS 1 – AVENIDA DO MAR The Avenida do Mar Super Special Stage returns to the Rali Vinho Madeira, bringing a lot of excitement and animation to downtown Funchal. It is a classification designed for exhibition, with some roundabouts, 90º turn and several chicanes to reduce the speed of the competitors. How to get there: Downtown Funchal.   SS 2 and 4 – CAMPO DE GOLFE This Special Stage starts on ER 207, after the entrance to the local Campo de Golfe and includes a short sequence of straights to Santo da Serra. From there and up to Fonte de Santo António, the course is quite winding and narrow. It is followed by the also very fast evolution to Ribeira de Machico, followed by the demanding climb to Lombo das Faias and a flat area until the "snail" of Portela. The timed section again contemplates the steep descent to Referta. How to get there: From Santo da Serra: at the cross road with Est. Fonte de Santo António, through EM Caramanchão and ER 102 at Lombo das Faias. From Machico: at Ribeira de Machico (Warning: emergency exit), Portela by Cam. Fajã dos Rolos and by ER 108 at the cross road with Est. Fonte de Santo António. SS 3 and 5 – PALHEIRO FERREIRO ER 201, commonly known as Caminho dos Pretos, is the "cathedral" of Madeira rallies and, in the past, few races that did not include it in their itinerary. It is done "uphill" between Palheiro Ferreiro and Terreiro da Luta with a route that mixes almost perfectly the fast areas with those that require a lot of technique, this year without the famous Choupana jump. After Terreiro da Luta follows the climb to the South Gate of Chão da Lagoa, the passage through the Funchal Ecological Park and the fast descent from the North Gate of Chão da Lagoa to Poiso and a few more hundred metres on the ER 202. How to get there: From Funchal: Cam. São João Latrão, through Rua Nova Curral dos Romeiros and in Choupana, by Cam. Meio and Cam. Terço, and Terreiro da Luta by ER 103; from Camacha, Poiso by ER 203 and Portão Sul do Chão da Lagoa by ER 203 and ER 103.   SS 6 and 8 – BOAVENTURA  Boaventura was for many years the only special stage disputed only in the northern part of the island. For many years it was also absent from the Rali Vinho da Madeira itinerary. It requires a lot of technique in the constant change between climbs and descents and fast and slow zones in a sometimes narrow course between Boaventura and Arco de São Jorge.   PE 7 and 9 – CIDADE DE SANTANA Introduced 13 years ago in the Rali Vinho da Madeira itinerary, it starts near the centre of the parish of Ilha and ends at Est. Eiras. It is almost always uphill, with the exception of some flat and very fast areas. On its route there are very technical areas where there are some "hooks". Its dispute is often marked by weather conditions different from the rest of the island. How to get there: From Santana: by Cam. Queimadas, by Est. Padre Agostinho J. Cardoso, by Rua Joaquim S. Branco (Warning: Emergency exit) and by Cam. Feiteira do Nuno.