Pirelli Triumphs at the Costa Brava Historic Rally

The Costa Brava Rally has officially opened the 2025 European Historic Rally Championship. For Pirelli, it was the perfect start to the season, with the top five positions in the standings all claimed by cars equipped with Pirelli tyres. Taking the top step of the podium was Jari-Matti Latvala in his Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD, who led the competition from the very first special stage. The race proved to be even more challenging than expected, as persistent rain fell continuously over the course.

Alongside the Finnish champion, Romain Dumas secured second place in a Porsche 911 Carrera RS 3.0, while Perroud Pascal claimed third in a BMW M3 E30.

The rain began on Friday, the opening day of the event, and continued until midway through Saturday, the final day, making road conditions around Girona almost prohibitive for the more than 250 entrants in the rally.

In these tough conditions, tyres played a crucial role in securing the excellent results achieved by Latvala and the other Pirelli drivers. The W7 wet tyres from the P7 Classic range were selected, providing grip and stability on the slippery asphalt soaked by the heavy rainfall before and during the stages. Only in the final stages were the Pirelli drivers able to switch to D7 Slick, which were better suited for tackling the damp surfaces.

"Although making predictions in rallying, especially at this level and significance, is never easy, I had no particular doubts that we would win this race," commented Terenzio Testoni, Rally Activity Manager. "What was more unexpected was securing eight of the top ten places in the overall classification, with some drivers even switching to our products during the event to ensure performance and consistency. Historic rallying is one of the disciplines we are focusing on the most this year, and this season opener is certainly an excellent sign for the future."