Gilles Panizzi: “Monte-Carlo is the most complicated”

Gilles Panizzi has been discreet since the seven-time winner in WRC ended his sporting career. The double French Rally champion nevertheless returned to his journey for AUTOhebdo through the Carpooling of the week.

The native of the Alpes-Maritimes notably returned to his regret at not having been able to win the Rally Monte-Carlo, a legendary event contested in its region.

“It’s such a stupid rally!, exclaimed Gilles Panizzi. It's the most complicated, with a lot of chance on adhesion. I wanted this trophy so much. When you want a girl too much, you don't go out with her. For the Monte-Carl', it was the same. I was asking too much. It is also necessary to remember all the adventures that I have undergone. In 2000, I was in a good position when my 206 no longer started at Gap because of the cold…”

If the old driver Peugeot opted for a Porsche 911 GT3 pour effectuer le voyage, c’est bien la 306 Maxi qui est restée gravée à jamais dans le coeur de celui qu’on surnomme « Tarmac Master » (le maître de l’asphalte).

“It was an incredible car. The engine sang. No, he was screaming. We took 9300 rpm. We were perched up there. Inside, we had such vibrations. We had this engine within us. What a noise, my God! We had to work on the volume of the radio so that I could hear Hervé (his brother and co-pilot) clearly…”, he added.

Discover Gilles Panizzi’s Carpooling in issue 2199 of AUTOhebdo, available now in digital version on all platforms and on kiosks.