Di Fulvio claims fourth victory at Svolte di Popoli hillclimb

Stefano Di Fulvio secured his fourth success at the 64th Svolte di Popoli hillclimb in the Abruzzo region, piloting a Nova Proto NP 01 turbo to victory in the Italian National Hillclimb Championship. The driver from Chieti won the aggregate classification with a best time of 3'07"65 in race one, holding off a strong challenge from Lucanian rival Achille Lombardi on an Osella PA 30, who was hampered by a spin during the opening encounter.

The podium was completed by Sergio Farris from Sardinia in a Wolf GB 08 Mistral and promising young Trentino driver Jacopo Dellamaria in a Wolf GB 08 Thunder Aprilia, the latter taking the sportscar category for motorcycle-derived engines. The event, which counts toward the ACI Sport junior national series for northern and southern zones, saw Popoli local Vincenzo Ottaviani forced to retire from race two after a joint failure on his Wolf, despite posting the third-fastest time in the opening race.

Lombardi struck back in race two, posting a winning time of 3'12"23 just 15 hundredths ahead of Di Fulvio, but the earlier spin proved decisive in the final reckoning. Just outside the podium, Francesco Ferragina from Catanzaro made strong progress in an Elia Avrio ST09, while Giuseppe D'Angelo dominated the GT category in a Ferrari 488 Evo ahead of Alessandro Gabrielli in a Ferrari 296. Alberto Scarafone from Lazio took the CN prototype class in an Osella PA 21 Honda, and Salvatore Tortora claimed the Racing Start Cup in a Peugeot 308.

Category winners included Silvano Stipani in the E1 class on a Peugeot 106, Lucio Petrocco in the rally car category on a Skoda Fabia, Giovanni Loffredo in TCR on a Cupra León, and Rodolfo Fusco in the two-cylinder national championship on a Fiat 500. Historic and classic car categories were won by Giuseppe Valenti on a Peugeot 205 and Luigi Scarpelli on a Peugeot 106 respectively.