Ponta do Sol starts at Vale and Cova do Pico Estates and progresses through very fast areas with a few hairpins in between, all the way to Carvalhal, traditionally a spectacle area in the streets neighbouring the municipal stadium. From there, and since last year, the stage starts to climb up to Paúl da Serra. This stretch is characterised by very fast areas, interspersed with some hairpins and others requiring a lot of attention, until you reach the beautiful plateau. Access From Ponta do Sol: via Cam. Lombo do Meio, via est. Eng. Ribeiro de Sousa and ER 222  

João Silva, driving a Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo, is looking ahead to Rali Vinho da Madeira with the aim of ‘fighting for victory. However, I'm aware of the enormous difficulty and demands this will entail. The pace will have to be very strong, but we mustn't make any mistakes either, as this race counts towards the championship. The season has exceeded expectations because our goal was to adapt to the new car and we've managed to fight for wins. We're the leaders, but our lead is short and everything is still open. In this edition of the rally, anyone who wants to be on the podium has to go as fast as possible. Last year we saw that the paces of the main competitors were very close. I think that this year the drivers from abroad will be able to break what has been, for almost a decade, the dominance of the Madeiran teams. This should be one of the best editions of the event’. João Silva is 36 years old and did his first rally in 2007 with a Toyota Yaris. With a Renault Clio R3, he was Madeira's junior champion in 2009 and 2011. That same year, he was national two-wheel drive champion. In this field and with a Peugeot 208 Rally4, he was regional champion in 2023. He won his first overall rally in 2017, in Calheta, at the wheel of a Citroën DS3 R5. He took part in the WRC Academy in 2012 in a Ford Fiesta R2. He is the leader of the 2024 regional championship.

This year's Madeira Rally Championship broadly kept the same rules as the previous edition and a calendar with seven events between March and November. The season started in Machico and there Miguel Nunes, again teaming up with João Paulo in a Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo, collected maximum points. João Silva, now with Luis Rodrigues also in a Skoda Fabia Rally2 Evo, was second but fastest in 3 of the 9 stages. Miguel Caires, always with João M. Sousa in the same car as his rivals, took the lowest place on the podium. The competition returned to the road in Calheta in mid-April. In the west, Nunes won again, but was unable to pick up maximum points as João Silva, second, also picked up the victory bonus on the last timed section. Miguel Caires joined them on the podium. A turnaround in the championship followed at the beginning of May in São Vicente. In the north, Silva took the lead and Nunes, who was following in his wake, hit a bump and dropped out. With his first win of the year and a podium shared with Miguel Caires and José Camacho, the driver of the FX Skoda now leads the championship. In the middle of July, the excitement went to Ribeira Brava. Silva got his win of the year but only gained two points on his biggest rival, as Nunes got four of the bonus points for speed in the special test. With these results, João Silva leads the FPAK competition with a 14-point advantage over Miguel Nunes. Miguel Caires is third, having always been on the podium and having also been the fastest in the timed sections on six occasions. In the competition for users of two-wheel drive vehicles, Vasco Silva has always won, having returned to the competition with Tiago Fernandes in a Renault Clio Rally4, but in Ribeira Brava he was behind the wheel of a Peugeot 208 Rally4. His closest rival has been Rui Jorge Fernandes, with João P. Freitas, also in a Renault, who should have won in the last event but punctured in the final kilometres. Artur Quintal, in a Peugeot 208 Rally4, is third. Ivo Sardinha, navigated by Marco Leça in a Peugeot 208 R2, continues to lead the Eng Rafael Costa Trophy. Classification: 1st João Silva, 97; 2nd Miguel Nunes, 83; 3rd Miguel Caires, 71; 4th Vasco Silva, 48; 5th José Camacho, 41; 6th Rui Pinto, 40; 7th Rui J. Fernandes, 31; 8th Artur Quintal, 18; 9th Filipe Pires and Vítor Sá, 14; 11th Renato Pita, 10; 12th Cláudio Nóbrega, 9; 13th Filipe Silva and Pedro M. Gomes, 6; 15th Emanuel Martins and Gil Silva, 5; 17th Nuno Ferreira and Nuno Figueira, 4; 19th Ivo Sardinha, Sandro Teixeira, José Jarimba, Jerónimo Silva and João Passos, 3. 48 drivers have qualified.

Spanish driver Diego Ruiloba is coming to the Rali Vinho da Madeira for the second time behind the wheel of a Citroën C3 Rally2. The driver intends to ‘make the most of this incredible opportunity and I must thank everyone who has made this experience fantastic. I also want to fight for the first places in the rally. The local drivers are very fast and have perfect knowledge of the special stages. We also have the drivers from the Portuguese championship, who have a lot of experience on the island, and Campedelli, who was second in Rome yesterday in the European championship, won't make it easy. There are no special tactics for this race. It will be the same as every rally: work well on the reconnaissance and prepare a good set-up for the car.’ Ruiloba is 23 years old and made his debut in 2019 with a Peugeot 208 1.2. In 2021 he got behind the wheel of a Suzuki Swift and won the Spanish trophy for the model. The following year, driving a Peugeot 208 Rally4, he won the Peugeot Rally Cup Ibérica. Since then he has represented Citroën with a C3 Rally2. This year he won his first three overall victories, in the Sierra Morena, Lisboa and Rias Baixas rallies.

The reconnaissance of the first special stage of the 65th Rali Vinho da Madeira, Cidade do Funchal, will take place tonight, 29th July. Between 10:15 pm. and 11:00 p.m., the teams will cover the route that they will have to take next Thursday, 1st August, in competition, on board their standard vehicles and collect their driving notes. These reconnaissances will involve the closure of Av. Calouste Gulbenkian (from Ed. 2000 to Av. Mar), Av. Dr. Sá Carneiro, Av. Mar e das Comunidades Madeirenses, R. José da Silva ‘Saca’, R. D. Carlos I, R. Casa da Luz, R. Artur de Sousa ‘Pinga’, R. Cnego Jerónimo Dias Leite to traffic between 21:00 and 23:30. Cónego Jerónimo Dias Leite, R. Conselheiro, Av. Zarco (south of Av. Arriaga), R. João Gago, R. 31 Janeiro (south of the Bazar do Povo bridge), R. 5 de Outubro (south of the Bazar do Povo bridge), R. Brigadeiro Oudinot (south of R. Dr. Fernão Ornelas) and R. Visconde Anadia (south of R. Dr. Fernão Ornelas).

The movement of cars, drivers, assistance team members, equipment and parts. The park fermé and service car parks, the autograph sessions, the unmistakable and repeated roar of the engines at the start of each special stage and the speed with which they hit the roads of our beautiful island of Madeira. Generations and generations of Madeirans seek out, breathe in and live intensely every moment and every detail listed above. Many, since the first editions, in the 60s of the 20th century. The Queen race of regional motorsport - the oldest on the calendar of the Portuguese Rally Championship calendar - moves thousands of fans all over the island every year and it's not uncommon for them to dedicate the entire first weekend of August to it. It's like this in every edition. Rali Vinho da Madeira is a unique phenomenon in our collective experience that can only be explained by passion.  And for all, undoubtedly the top sporting event on our homeland. I'm sure that the 65th edition will be yet another opportunity for Madeirans to express their deep ties to the RVM. I hope that everyone will experience it enthusiastically, without neglecting safety so that a new edition can be completed in a festive atmosphere.