WRC Rally de Portugal

Rally de Portugal was included in the inaugural 1973 WRC event in 1972 behind the wheel of a BMW 2002 TI.

Frenchman Jean-Luc Thérier won the first WRC event in 1973 in an Alpine Renault A110 1800. The mixed-surface event was the third event on the calendar that season. Finnish champion Markku Alén excelled in the 1970s driving Fiats. He took victories in 1975, 1977, and 1978 and podiumed in 1974. He would later tally wins in 1981 and 1987.

In the event’s early years, Rally de Portugal was known for its fans, who crowded the roadway even as drivers sped by. This came to a head in 1986. Finnish driver Timo Salonen, 1985 champion and driving for Peugeot at the time, hit a cameraman during a Wednesday morning stage.

Joaquim Santos, racing in his home country behind the wheel of a Ford RS200, started the stage later and overcorrected to avoid hitting a spectator in a fast corner. He lost control of his car and went into the nearby crowd, killing three people and injuring 32 more. Eleven more cars ran through the stage before emergency crews came. The WRC teams withdrew from the remainder of the rally. It was part of why Group B cars of the decade were dropped following the 1986 season.

The following year, local driver Joaquim Guedes entered the event and hit spectators. No one was seriously hurt, but it would be until the 1990s for organizers to get the crowd under control.

The 2001 event was marked by weather so bad the event was dropped in 2002 for Rallye Deutschland. Organizers changed the characteristics of the stages to be purely gravel instead of mixed surfaces. After a few years off the calendar, the new course was added to the 2007 WRC calendar.

Fans noted the new course didn’t have the same appeal as the historic route in northern Portugal. Organizers returned to that area in 2015, where the rally continues today. The event was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic but has been a part of the WRC calendar every year after that.

Alén and eight-time WRC champion Sébastien Ogier are tied with five event wins each. The event has won the award for Best WRC Rally in the World five times and Most Improved Rally in 2000.