Simone Tempestini reached five victories in the Argeș Rally, an absolute record of the competition, after he dominated the stage that took place over the weekend and also reached Transfăgărășan.
Simone Tempestini had a fantastic race. PHOTO: Facebook
Eight times absolute national champion in the last 9 years, Simone Tempestini (Porsche 997 RGT) continues to dominate the stage on the Argeș asphalt, where he only missed the victory once since the relaunch of the rally in 2019. At the end of the over 120 kilometers of special tests exclusively on asphalt, the pilot from Napoca Rally Academy was timed with a total time of 01:11:44.3.
The second place was occupied by the Bulgarian Martin Surilov (Citroen C3 Rally2), at 38.8 seconds, and the third place in the general top went to Andrei Gîrtofan (Skoda Fabia Rally 2), 50.1 seconds slower than the winner. Among the contenders for the podium, Norbert Maior (Ford Fiesta Rally3) and Raul Badiu (Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo) had to abandon.
For Simone Tempestini and his co-driver Sergiu Itu it is the first victory of the season domestically after they missed the victory in Harghita due to a technical problem, although they dominated almost all the special stages. It is the 45th victory recorded by the pilot from Cluj in the Betano National Rally Championship since 2015, when he obtained his first championship title.
“It was a rally full of challenges, from the tracks on Transfăgărășan, full of turns and at very high speeds, to the capricious weather. We knew it would be sunny, so we adjusted our tires and when we got to the top, it was raining. All's well that ends well and we are happy for what we have achieved“, Tempestini said at the end.
With already an overall victory in the European, Simone Tempestini will have a busy schedule in the coming period. On May 31 – June 1, he will try to defend his trophy won last year at the Maramureș Rally, and on June 13-15 he will compete in the Scandinavia Rally to try to return to the first position in the European competition.
