Team MRF Tyres welcomes Italian legend Paolo for 2021 rally season
Sardenga, 19 Feb 2021: Team MRF Tyres is excited to have an 11-time Italian national champion joining the squad for the season as Paolo Andreucci’s car will be shod by the Indian tyres for the 2021 Italian Gravel Rally Championship.
Andreucci joins the team for the six-round Italian Gravel Rally Championship campaign and will drive a Citroen C3 Rally 2 on the latest generation of MRF Tyres.
Being able to partner with an 11-time national champion inspires confidence and a strong commitment to building on the progress made over the past year for MRF Tyres.
Andreucci has more than 20 years of experience in tyre development and these skills will be a valued asset throughout the season for Team MRF Tyres.
Alongside side the six round Italian Gravel Rally Championship, Team MRF Tyres has an aggressive 2021 testing schedule and Andreucci will play an important role in this program.
It demonstrates MRF Tyres’ commitment to the European market and the desire to reach the front of the world’s best championships.
The Italian Gravel rally Championship is one of the strongest and toughest championships in the world, drawing big fields and creating expert drivers.
After seven years on the west coast, Italy’s gravel round of the FIA World Rally Championship will swap sides for 2021. That’s not to say Alghero won’t be included in this year’s itinerary. Following the 2.76km shakedown at Loiri Porto San Paolo close to Olbia, the cars cross the Mediterranean island to Alghero where the picturesque town hosts the ceremonial start on the Thursday evening.
The crews remain in town overnight before heading off for the first day’s action on Friday morning. From then on, the cars will return to service at Olbia’s waterside Molo Brin area.
The season starts on 24-25 April with Rally Adriatico where Andreucci, along with codriver Francesco won here last year. The second round will be supporting the WRC with the Rally Italia Sargenda in early June. San Marino follows before the Rally Città di Arezzo – Valtiberina.
It was on these Tuscan roads last year where Emil Lindholm/Mikael Korhonen dominated the event before a mechanical issue robbed Team MRF Tyres of victory.
The final two rounds of the season take place on 11-12 September with the Rally dei Nuraghi e del Vermentino and on 6-7 November with the Liburna Rally Terra 2021.
Andreucci’s signing comes after a successful 2020 season with Team MRF Tyres taking stage wins in the company’s first-ever season in top-level European Rally competition.
It is the next piece in the puzzle as MRF Tyres continues to develop and build on a strong 2020 campaign.
The 2021 season started well for MRF Tyres with Lindholm/Korhonen taking a podium spot in the opening round of the Finnish Championship at Artic Rally. It makes two podiums from two outings on snow and ice after Craig Breen and Paul Nagle achieved a podium in 2020 in Finland.
MRF Tyres has proven pace and experience on gravel rallying around the world, producing perfect tyres for national and regional rallying. As MRF Tyres prepares to take on more and more top-level rallies around the world.
Further announcements for the 2021 campaigns will be made in due course. The next outing for Team MRF Tyres will be the SM OK Auto Ralli, the second round of the Finnish Rally Championship with Lindholm/Korhonen on 5-6 March.
Quotes
Paolo Andreucci (Driver, Team MRF Tyres, Italian Gravel Rally Championship)
“MRF Tyres is a very important company in the automotive market and, above all, is investing seriously in motorsport. We have common and converging objectives, and this commitment is what has drawn me to this program.”
“I like to challenge myself with new opportunities, and I am excited about this one. I am a person who has always made commitment and determination based on strengths. It is thanks to the passion and technical knowledge of the entire team at MRF Tyres that I believe together we can do a good job.”
“For 2021, we want to be as competitive as possible in the Italian Gravel Rally Championship and above all to help MRF in developing competition tyres. The potential is high as well as everyone’s desire to achieve important goals.”
Mr. Arun Mammen (Vice-Chairman & Managing Director, MRF Tyres)
“We are proud of how competitive Team MRF Tyres was in the 2020 European Rally Championship season. Every one at MRF Tyres is working hard and we are happy to be present competitively on a world stage like this.”
“To be able to attract an 11-time national champion to MRF Tyres speaks about our commitment to rallying in Europe and the continued development of our rally tyre. We are dedicated to further our success and we look forward to the Italian Gravel Rally Championship.”
“I would like to welcome Paolo to the team and wish him the best of luck for the 2021 season.”
About MRF Tyres
MRF Tyres was established in 1946 and now employs over 16,000 people and has revenue of around US$2.5 billion making it the biggest tyre supplier in India. MRF Tyres supplies rally and race tyres around the world. MRF Tyres entered the European Rally Championship for the first time in 2020 taking stage wins and took a podium position in the team’s first snow rally in the Finnish Rally Championship. It is part of a long motorsport heritage for the company that has seen multiple Asia Pacific Rally Championship titles, open wheeler success, national rally and racing success.
About Paolo Andreucci
Paolo Andruecci is an Italian rally stalwart, having broken onto the scene in the late 1980s. It didn’t take him long to make his mark, taking a top 10 in Rally Portugal in 1989, taking second in class in the Production WRC class. He has made his career in Italy on gravel and tarmac, starting over 330 rallies and taking 80 wins. Incredibly, he has taken 11 Italian titles overall and a further five class titles. He brings a wealth of experience to MRF Tyres and our aggressive development campaign into Europe.
Andreucci’s Championship titles
2020 –Italy 2WD class (Tarmac), 2018 – Italian Championship, 2017 – Italian Championship, 2015 – Italian Championship, 2014 – Italian Championship, 2012 – Italian Championship, 2011 – Italian Championship, 2010 – Italian Championship, 2009 – Italian Championship, 2006 – Italian Championship, 2005 – Italian S1600 class, 2004 – Italian S1600 class, 2003 – Italian Championship, 2003 – Italian S1600 class, 2001 – Italian Championship, 1998 – Italian 2WD Championship, 1997 – Italian 2WD Championship
About the Italian Gravel Rally Championship (Campionato Italiano Rally Terra)
Formed in 2017, the Italian Gravel Rally Championship allows the finest rally drivers to take on the best gravel roads across Italy. Sanctioned by the national ASN, ACI Sport, tallies typically take place over a single day of competition with around 70km of competitive action (except for the Rally Italia Sardegna which supports the WRC round). The fields are highly competitive with more than 20 Rally 2 cars, producing exciting finishes – to the point that the 2020 Rally San Marino was tied with 0.0 between the first two cars! The 2020 Champion was WRC2 front runners Bulacia Wilkinson Marco/Marcelo Der Ohannesian. Andreucci took second with two victories with codrivers Francesco Pinelli and Anna Andreussi.
2021 Italian Gravel Rally Championship Calendar
1. Rally Adriatico 2021 (24-25 April)
2. Rally Italia Sardegna 2021 (3-6 June)
3. San Marino Rally 2021 (26-27 June)
4. Rally Città di Arezzo – Valtiberina 2021 (30 July – 1 August)
5. Rally dei Nuraghi e del Vermentino 2021 (11-12 September)
6. Liburna Rally Terra 2021 (6-7 November)
