Belgian Joachim Wagemans returns to Rali da Madeira with an Alpine A110 RGT. The driver believes that "this year should be better. I have better competitive pace because I raced in Italy. It was with a Rally4, but it's always about driving. The biggest difference will also be that I now have more experience with a car I wasn't familiar with in 2024, and I hadn't been in action for five years. We also have pace notes, which gave us a lot of work last year. The Rally2s are faster and our cars are the same, so I think it will be very difficult to achieve a result like we did in 2024. Let's hope we don't have any problems and can use our experience to go faster." Wagemans is 30 years old and made his rally debut in 2012 with a Ford Fiesta R2. He used this vehicle until 2014 and the following year switched to a Peugeot 208 R2, the model he drove in his debut at Rali da Madeira in 2017. In the following edition, he returned with a Peugeot 208 T16 R5. It was also in 2018 that he won the TER two-wheel drive cup. He returned to Madeira in 2024 with an Alpine A110 RGT and finished seventh. In 2025, he competed in three rallies in Italy with a Peugeot 208 Rally4 and a Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 HF.

Dani Sordo will have the number 1 on his Hyundai i20N Rally2 in the 66th edition of the Rali da Madeira, which takes place in a week's time. The Spanish Hyundai driver tops the list of 97 entrants revealed this afternoon by Club Sports da Madeira, the entity responsible for the event since its first edition in 1959. The list revealed today is marked not only by a large number of competitors but also by their high quality, promising a memorable rally. The list made public today includes 24 competitors with Rally2 cars, 7 with RGT and 26 with Rally4, which, under normal conditions, will allow many spectators to watch for about an hour the evolution of teams with the best cars available at this time at the international competitive level. Rali da Madeira will feature international stars as well as drivers competing for the top positions in national and regional championships and those from single-brand competitions that include the event in their calendar. In addition to Sordo, Simone Campedelli and Diego Ruiloba, the two fastest drivers in last year's edition, will be at the start of the event, and, among others, names such as Kris Meeke, Armindo Araújo, Ricardo Teodósio, Miguel Nunes, José Pedro Fontes, João Silva, Rúben Rodrigues, Alexandre Camacho, the record holder for victories in the rally, Miguel Caires, and Rui Jorge Fernandes. These and other competitors will be behind the wheel of all the brands present in this group, Skoda, with several versions of the Fabia Rally2, Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, Citroën C3 Rally2, Hyundai i20N Rally2 and even a Ford Fiesta R5. Filipe Freitas, Gil Freitas, Joachim Wagemans and Paulo Mendes are references in the low and efficient RGTs made by Porsche and Alpine. Competition within competition, the fight for supremacy among front-wheel drive vehicle users will be fierce. In addition to the drivers who set the pace in this category at both national and regional level, Rali da Madeira will once again feature the main contenders in the Peugeot Rally Cup Iberica and Portugal. The balance between RC4 cars even leads names such as Vasco Silva, Sandro Teixeira, Carlos Ferreira, Henrique Moniz, Ricardo Sousa, Giovanni Fariña and the previous winner of the rally, Adruzilo Lopes, to predict how the various stages of the race will unfold. The event, directed by Filipe Sousa, will also feature drivers in the not-so-current R3T, Nuno Ferreira and João Alix, as well as stars of the show such as Cláudio Nóbrega in a Datsun 1200, Miguel Gouveia in a BMW E36 and Mário Oliveira in a Ford Escort RS Mk II. There are plenty of reasons for the rally-loving locals and the many visitors who come to Madeira at this time of year to be impatient for Rali da Madeira to get underway.

Gil Freitas is back to compete in Rali da Madeira with an Alpine A110 RGT and aims to "fight for a place in the top ten. That would be great. I was out of action for almost a year and last week we were in Ponte de Lima to get back into the swing of things, but unfortunately we didn't finish due to a breakdown in the car. I am keen to take part in the Rally because it is such a great event. We will have many opponents in our group because this is a very popular race and one that drivers like to be part of. We are prepared and I just hope it doesn't rain because with the RGTs we can't carry spare tyres in the car like the other competitors. That limits us." The driver started rallying in 2013 with an Opel Kadett GT/E and in the same year quickly switched to an Opel Ascona 400. The following season, he started driving a Porsche 997 GT3, which he kept until 2016 and with which he was national champion of the group in 2015 and won the AMAK trophy between 2014 and 2016. In 2017, he drove a Citroën DS3 R5, but the following year he returned to Porsche, this time with a 991 GT3. In 2024, he finished tenth in Rali da Madeira with an Alpine A110 RGT, which he is driving again this year.

As in previous years, RTP Madeira will provide extensive coverage of Rali da Madeira, with a link to RTP Internacional. All Special stages will be broadcast live on the regional channel, with seven of them also being broadcast on RTP Internacional. In addition to the Special Stages, RTP Madeira will broadcast preview programmes on 28th, 29th and 30th July after the news; the start and finish podium and review programmes, as described below: 31st July •    15:55 - Start Ceremony - Praça do Povo Podium •    19:20 - 1st SS - City of Funchal •    Review Programme after the News 1st August •    10:20 - SS Campo de Golfe 1, Palheiro Ferreiro 1 and Santana 1 •    15:20 - SS Campo de Golfe 2, 16:05 Palheiro Ferreiro 2 and 17:15 Classification Santana 2 •    Summary programme after the News 2nd August •    10:20 - SS Ponta do Sol 1, Calheta 1 and Rosário 1 •    15:20 - SS Ponta do Sol 2, Calheta 2 and Rosário 2 •    18:17 - Final Service Park •    18:30 - Final Podium •    Review programme after the TV news 4th August •    Final Review programme for the 2025 Rali da Madeira  

Rúben Rodrigues will be participating in Rali da Madeira for the first time this year. The Azorean champion's goal is to "score as many points as possible for the national championship. We face all the difficulties of a debut in this rally with such specific classifications. But we are ready to give it our all. We have everything we need and we are motivated and confident. Being in Calheta was important because I was unfamiliar with the asphalt in Madeira. It was also very rewarding because we managed to set some interesting times. The rallies in Madeira require excellent terrain reconnaissance and precise notes, which is sometimes very difficult due to the number of tourists circulating during reconnaissance. It's a huge challenge." The Auto Açoreana driver is 40 years old and has been rallying since 2009, when he made his debut with a Citroën Saxo Cup. The driver's career was built ‘from scratch’ and in 2018 and 2019 he became the Azorean two-wheel drive champion at the wheel of a Peugeot 208 R2 and a Peugeot 208 Rally4. In 2021, he moved to the wheel of a Citroën C3 Rally2, achieving his first victory and also his first overall regional title. He would go on to become champion again in 2023 and 2024 with two versions of the Skoda Fabia, rally2 Evo and RS Rally2. In 2025, he is competing in the national championship and has already shown on several occasions the speed he so often displayed in the neighbouring archipelago.

Azorean Henrique Moniz makes his debut in Rali da Madeira and aims to “get to know the rally. In our first participation, we will be finding out things, but we obviously want to do well. We have been trying to enter this race for many years. We finally got the support we needed and want to enjoy it to the fullest. We want a good result, but we know absolutely nothing about the event. Our whole season has been a discovery, we have worked hard and, here and there, we have shown good pace. However, we are still a little below our best..." Moniz is 41 years old and competed in his first rally in 2006 with a Peugeot 106 S16. In 2009, he moved to a Citroën C2 R2, which he used until 2013. Then, in a Citroën DS3 R3T, he was the Azorean two-wheel drive champion in 2014 and 2015. Last year, he opted for the Peugeot 208 Rally4, which he is bringing to Madeira. In 2025, he decided to leave the neighbouring archipelago and is now competing in the CPR and the single-make competition for the model he drives. He is third in the Peugeot Rally Cup Iberica, second in the Peugeot Rally Cup Portugal and third in the Portuguese 2WD Rally Championship.

Paulo Mendes will start the next Rali da Madeira, "as always, trying to reach the finish line with the best possible result. Although we have been racing with this car for some time, we still have a lot to learn about it, and a race of this nature is great for drawing conclusions, discovering new things, and looking for new settings in terms of electronics, which is quite extensive in this model. Even in this context, I intend to do better than I did last year, when we had many problems and it was difficult to get the car to the finish line. We will try to enjoy the rally from start to finish, hoping that the weather conditions will be good. In Porsches, we cannot take tyres to change..." Paulo Mendes is 61 years old and competed in his first rally in 2014 with a Porsche 997 GT3. Over the years, he has combined hill climbs with rallies and is known for his fast performances, which are always determined by great consistency. He won the RGT class in the Madeira championship in 2021 and 2023. A year ago, he debuted his current car, a Porsche 992 GT3, the first model to be used in this category in Europe. Adapting a model designed for the track to rallies took some time, and the driver is still making several adjustments to his car.