martedì 19 novembre 2019

Giuseppe Testa does not enter the Tuscan Rewind, Marco Pollara wins the Italian Rally Junior 2019 Championship

At the eve of the closing round of the season, the Tuscan Rewind, the young driver from Sicily got the mathematical certainty of the title as his main rival, Testa, did not enter the race. Pollara won, therefore, his second Italian title, after that secured in 2017. He is the best of the ACI Team Italia's talents in the Ford Fiesta R2 of Motorsport Italia wearing Pirelli tyres.
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Rome, Tuesday, November 19th, 2019 – Marco Pollara won ACI Sport’s Italian Rally Junior 2019 Championship. The driver from Prizzi, class 96, secured the title ahead of the closing round, the Tuscan Rewind, that is due to take place this coming weekend in Montalcino as the only rival that could still challenge him, Giuseppe Testa, did not enter the rally. Pollara is first at 60.75 points and leads Testa at 54.25 while Mattia Vita is currently third at 37. The rally in Tuscany is, therefore, going to provide the best chance to celebrate his second CIR Junior championship after the one Pollara won back in 2017. Pollara and Testa had been fighting for the title also in 2016, when the latter had the upper hand.

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Second title for Pollara, who kicked off this year’s campaign in the best way winning the Rally Sanremo on the tarmac and the Rally Adriatico on the gravel. The third round, the Rally Italia Sardegna, has been bitter-sweet: it started a bit slow in Race one before the prompt recovery with the victory in Race 2. The fourth round has been held at the Rally di Roma Capitale and Pollara’s retirement fed the hopes of his rivals, but the fifth round, the tarmac of the Rally del Friuli, reinstated his candidacy to the title. The closer at the Tuscan Rewind crowed Pollara as the best of the 7 ACI Team Italia’s drivers fighting for the Junior classification, in the Ford Fiesta R2 managed by Motorsport Italia and fitting Pirelli tyres, even before being run.
The driver from Palermo can now share the joy of the victory with his two co-drivers: David Castiglioni in the first four races and Rosario Siragusano, who made his debut in Friuli.

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CIR JUNIOR CLASSIFICATION AFTER THE RALLY DEL FRIULI: 1. Pollara 60,75pt; 2. Testa 54,25pt; 3. Vita 37pt; 4. Mazzocchi 28pt; 5. Bernardi 19,50pt; 6. Pucella 12pt;

CIR JUNIOR CALENDAR: 21-23/03 Rallye Sanremo; 3-4/05 Rally Adriatico [gravel]; 12-16/06 Rally Italia Sardegna [gravel]; 19-21/07 Rally di Roma Capitale; 29-31/08 Rally del Friuli; 21-23/11 Tuscan Rewind;