Rali da Madeira
The Rali da Madeira (formerly known as Rali Vinho da Madeira) is a tarmac rally held in Madeira Island, Portugal, and it is the biggest annual sporting event of the island,[1] bringing thousands of people onto the roads to watch the drivers compete through the hilly terrain and the natural landscapes. Its first edition was in 1959, having later entered the European Rally Championship in 1979, and remaining in its calendar until 2012. It has also been part of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge since the championship was first held in 2006, which brought further exposure to the event as Eurosport broadcasts footage of this championship to many countries.
The rally is traditionally run in the summer, in early August or late July. The stages of Chão da Lagoa, Paul da Serra and the Encumeada downhill are known as its biggest driving challenges. Several drivers of international note such as Ari Vatanen, Henri Toivonen, Massimo Biasion and Andrea Aghini have won this rally before going on to win World Rally Championship rounds and championships. Aghini is the most successful driver in the events history, winning four times between 1992 and 2002. In 2013 Giandomenico Basso became the second driver to achieve a fourth victory, the same happened in 2015 with Bruno Magalhães.
From 1959 until 2024 the event was named after Madeira wine, famously made on the island. However the rally was rebranded in 2025 as Rali da Madeira, removing any reference to wine or alcohol due to "the need to adapt to restrictions and bans on advertising alcoholic beverages in motorsport."[2] Since 2019, the event has featured in the FIA European Rally Trophy calendar.
Winners
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References
[edit]- ^ "Rally Vinho da Madeira - ERC". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 8 January 2009.
- ^ "Rali Vinho da Madeira Renasce como Rali da Madeira em 2025: Uma Nova Era para um Rali de tradições". ralidamadeira.com. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
- ^ "Rali Vinho da Madeira - Previous Winners". Archived from the original on 2002-10-05. Retrieved 2009-01-08.
External links
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