Rally de Portugal 1985

Overview

The euphoria of the French Peugeot team, which was expected to remain sky-high after Ari Vatanen's soar-away success in Sweden, received a severe setback when the Finn went out of the 1985 Portuguese rally. But all was not lost. Late leader Walter Rohrl also hit problems in his Audi leaving Peugeot back-up Timo Salonen to score a fine win and take the Championship lead. Perhaps though, the real surprise was the defeat of the Audis by the consistent Jolly Club Lancia Rally driven by Massimo Biasion. Once again, the drama wasn't confined only to the drivers. Close-quarters camera footage vividly illustrates the 'enthusiasm' of the excited crowd, clamouring to get as close as possible to the action!