It was a race, literally, full of ‘ups and downs’. The particularly challenging qualifying stages, many on dirt roads and agricultural roads with poor conditions, were the reason for so many position changes. A IT Exam who, once again, ‘saw this rally from the inside’, can attest that competitors were often surprised by obstacles such as tractors and, of course, in the case of the Azores, cows – in regular rallies, the roads are not , as a rule, closed to traffic.
If, up to the 13th and penultimate classification special – the 14th classification special was canceled as a result of a herd of cows interrupting the race for several competitors – first place was occupied by the Portuguese duo, national champions, Eduardo Carpinteiro Albino and José Carlos Figueiredo, the race ended with victory for the duo Guido Guerrini and Artur Prusak, driving a Kia E-Niro. A small error in the last qualifying special took the Portuguese duo of the KIA – ACP Electric – BP team to fourth place. Among the beneficiaries of this fall were teammates Nuno Serrano and Alexandre Berardo, who ended up in second place overall.
Completing the podium in the regularity component was the duo Michal Zdarsky and Jakub Nabelek who, remember, had won the Oeiras Portugal Eco Rally.
Like the Oeiras race, the Azorean race also counted for the Bridgestone FIA ecoRally Cup, the sport’s world championship. In this test, the general classification also includes the energy efficiency component. But the first three classified remained, albeit with a change: Michal Zdarsky and Jakub Nabelek were second and Nuno Serrano and Alexandre Berardo were third.
In the analysis of energy efficiency alone, the victory went to Carlos Silva and Sancho Ramalho driving a BMW i3.
As usual in the Portuguese New Energy Championship – PRIO, the Azores Eco Rallye ended with a Street Stage, which took place on the Ponta Delgada riverbank. In this special race, the victory went to the duo Pedro Morais and Silva Coutinho, driving a Hyundai Ioniq 5.
A rally aligned with nature
Paulo Miguel Rego, director of the race, highlighted that “being able to combine non-polluting sport with the natural landscape of the Azores always has great symbolism”. The director of the Azores Eco Rally 2024 also highlighted that “the event was extremely positive, with the drivers praising the organization. It was very important in terms of visibility that the race could be part of the Bridgestone FIA ecoRally Cup and now we have to wait for the analysis that the FIA will carry out on the various reports and believe that in 2025 it will be possible to hold the race also counting towards the international championship.”
The next race of the Portugal New Energy Championship – PRIO is scheduled for July 27th and 28th, in Proença-a-Nova.
