Avbelj–Andrejka and Nucita–Messina will take two Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 cars onto the roads of Rally Regione Piemonte.
In the province of Caserta, MS Munaretto begins its first collaboration of the year with Enrico Girardi, who will contest his home rally alongside Adriano Gioielli.
The opening weekend of August will see MS Munaretto’s sphere of operations stretch from Alba to the foothills of the Matese. Three crews and as many Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 cars will tackle two markedly different events: the fifth round of the Italian Absolute Rally Championship on one side, and on the other a rally shaped by local knowledge and roads that must be read without hesitation.
The Italian championship spotlight will fall on the 20th #RA Rally Regione Piemonte, better known as the Rally di Alba, scheduled from 31 July to 2 August. MS Munaretto will field two crews among the first ten cars on the road: Boštjan Avbelj and Damijan Andrejka, carrying number 3, and Andrea Nucita and Maurizio Messina, with number 10, both aboard Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 machinery.
For Avbelj, it will be time to return immediately to the chase after his result at Rally di Roma Capitale. In the capital, joined on that occasion by Elia De Guio, the Slovenian driver put together a composed performance to secure third place overall, remaining firmly in the battle at the front even through the weekend’s most demanding sections. In Alba he will be reunited with Damijan Andrejka, with whom he has shared his CIAR campaign and a substantial part of the success achieved this season.
With number 10 on the doors, Andrea Nucita and Maurizio Messina will instead look to pick up the thread that was broken in Rome. The Sicilian had lit up the rally from the opening stage at the Colosseum, setting the outright fastest time, before being forced to retire on Saturday’s SS3, “Piana di Rascino”, while running among the leading contenders. That outcome did nothing to erase the pace he had shown and makes the Piedmont round even more significant in the fight for the Italian Rally Promotion Championship.
Rally Regione Piemonte will offer terrain on which the rhythm cannot be allowed to falter. The start will take place in Cherasco at 21:00 on Friday evening, while the crews will reach the final finish in Piazza Prunotto, Alba, at 15:00 on Sunday. The route features 11 special stages and 143 competitive kilometres within a total distance of 488.25 kilometres. The final say will belong to the 16.28-kilometre “Cossano–Trezzo Tinella 2 – Gil Calleri Power Stage”, a fast test capable of keeping the outcome open all the way to the final stop control.
Further south, MS Munaretto will compete in the 13th Rally del Matese – 11th Rally del Medio Volturno, where it will begin a technical collaboration with Enrico Girardi. The Sant’Angelo d’Alife driver will be joined by Adriano Gioielli in the number 9 Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, on an event whose every metre he knows and which has long held an important place in his sporting career.
Girardi has become a familiar presence on the roads of the Matese. His name appears on the winners’ list thanks to his 2015 victory, while in the 2025 edition he finished fifth overall, again alongside Adriano Gioielli, in a Škoda Fabia R5. This year, the step up to the newer Fabia RS Rally2 and his debut with MS Munaretto will open a new chapter without taking away the familiar feel of competing on home ground.
The Matese programme will begin at 20:15 on Saturday, 1 August, from the Cotton Village in Piedimonte Matese, with the short 2.12-kilometre town-centre super special immediately bringing the rally to life. On Sunday, the crews will complete three runs over the San Potito Sannitico, Gioia Sannitica and Alife stages, before the finish scheduled for 17:30 in Piazza Vincenzo Cappello, Piedimonte Matese. In total, they will cover 72.86 competitive kilometres and 208.51 kilometres overall, entirely on tarmac.
