Wednesday, May 1st 2013 marks the start of the Rally Argentina, the fifth round of the World Rally Championship and one of the fastest of this year's WRC meetings. For four days, rally fans will have their eyes glued to Cordoba, a province of Argentina, where the LOTOS Rally Team's Michał Kościuszko and Maciek Szczepaniak will be competing.

The Rally Argentina is a high speed event requiring lots of technical skill, and is one of the most spectacular of the WRC events. The cult-favourite El Condor stage is considered one of the most fabulous of the rally, with cars driving through 'water-splashes' and being thrown over the uneven roads which are part of the almost moon-like landscape. It only takes a few runs along the soft dusty roads with which this rally abounds to expose protruding stones and deep ruts. Adverse weather conditions, in particular chilly mornings and evenings, relatively low temperatures during the day and potential rain, all add to the difficult nature of the rally. Animals suddenly popping up on the roads can also cause trouble.

"It's a unique rally. It requires an iron constitution," says Michal Kosciuszko. "The surface changes all the time, from soft to hard gravel, stones and long stretches of asphalt. It's fatal for the tires. For us, this is particularly important as we're the only WRC crew on the grid using DMACK tires, which are much weaker than the Michelins. I hope that this time we're lucky and our MINI reaches the finish line."

Over the four days of the rally, the teams will cover 14 special stages with a total length of 407.64 kilometres. The base for the Rally Argentina is Villa Carlos Paz, a town on the banks of the San Roque river.

Wednesday May 1st at 10:48 local time (15:48 Polish time) sees the flag drop on the first of the qualifying stages. Then, in the afternoon (21:00 Polish time), the first special stage gets under way – a six kilometre-long leg of the Super Special. On Thursday, the organisers have four stages planned, including the nearly 52 kilometre-long round-trip of the Agua de Oro. Friday then has five special stages running a total length of 165.74 km as part of the Super Special, making it the longest day of competition during the Rally Argentina. Saturday's business is spread across four special stages with a total length of 77.92 kilometres, including the spectacular El Condor stage. The end of the rally is scheduled for 14:20 local time (19:20 Polish time).

Grupa LOTOS is the strategic partner of the LOTOS Rally Team. Michał Kościuszko is also supported by the LOTOS Dynamic fuel brand and LOTOS motor oils.

For more information about Michał Kościuszko and Maciek Szczepaniak's rally performances, please visit: http://www.lotosrallyteam.pl/ or find the 'Emocje do pełna' Facebook profile at http://www.facebook.com/EmocjeDoPelna.

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