The first driver to manage a winning at Rally Vinho da Madeira was "Zeca" Cunha. The driver managed the feat at the gear of a Triumph TR4 in 1965. Besides his outstanding speed, Cunha had an irreverent posture that helped him build his fame. The driver was, to an entire generation, a symbol of speed and, also, an example of reverence and behavior that stood out from what was the norm at the time.

"Zeca" Cunha was born in 1944 and started practicing motor-racing at the beginning of the 1960's. He drove vehicles such as Triumph TR4, with which he won the Rally, a Ford Cortina Lotus, a Renault 8 Gordini and an Opel GT. His speed captured the attention of the responsible for Gordini, who invited him to race abroad under the Renault branch. The driver passed away in the second half of the 1980's of sudden death.