A performance of certain depth by both crews marked the 68th Rallye Sanremo in a tough, difficult, sometimes unpredictable race, managing to place another podium with the third place of Fabio Andolfi and Stefano Savoia and an important milestone reached by the rookies in R5 Andrea Mazzocchi and Silvia Gallotti, both on Skoda Fabia R5, bringing up the flag of the ACI Team Italia project.

 

Andolfi, who despite being from Liguria did not have an important baggage of experience behind him in this race, immediately seemed in great shape. After the opening Power Stage where the worsening weather conditions advised all the riders to take a cautious approach, the Savonaese started the long day on Sunday with a knife between his teeth, distinguishing himself in the first test lap with the sound affirmation on the PS2 and the excellent times of PS3 and PS4 that saw him finish the first part of the race in the lead. In the second step, thanks to the rain and obviously the change in the conditions of the fund, Andolfi drove with experience and achieved a third place at the Sanremo finish that allows him to leave the Ligurian Riviera as second in the standings with 24 points.

 

"I'm happy - said Andolfi - this morning we started strong, the first lap went well, then honestly I struggled a bit, especially in the second lap on" Vignai "which was a bit dirty, but I'm starting to get to know the Michelins always better and the whole team is a guarantee. We did a good job, the tests of the Rallye Sanremo proved to be wonderful, it is the school of Italian rally on asphalt. Difficult, technical, the weather always ready to get a grip on it. We have important data to analyze to better prepare for the Targa Florio ”.

For its part, Andrea Mazzocchi's performance was excellent, as he had to face a radically different race compared to Ciocco in a particularly challenging technical context. Thanks to a growing approach and a correct interpretation of the race choices, the rider from Piacenza finished in eighteenth position, improving his pace test after test.

 

“Sanremo did not contradict itself as usual - commented Mazzocchi - it was a very demanding race, albeit short. Our apprenticeship continues, we are happy with the improvement we have had compared to the Thick. The first two laps we opted for a conservative solution, given the very uncertain weather, while on the last lap we used the mold and the feedback was there. As always, thanks to ACI Sport, Pirelli and the whole team: we are working well, I'm sure the results will come ”.

 

We will now be back in the race from 6 to 8 May for the 105th Targa Florio, in Sicily.