Rally legend Walter Röhrl to compete in 2011 Targa Tasmania

Exciting news for Australian motorsport fans with the announcement that rally legend and Porsche icon Walter Röhrl will be competing in Targa Tasmania this year. Röhrl has raced in Targa Tasmania twice before, 1997 and 2000, and will be reunited with a 30-year-old rally car in Tasmania for 2011.

Back in 1981 Röhrl and co-driver Christian Geistdoerfer raced a Porsche 911 SC at the San Remo Rally. It was the era dominated by the fearsome Audi Quattros and Röhrl almost won the race, in what is considered to be one of his greatest drives ever. It was the only time he raced the 911 SC and the very same car has been located, restored and will be in Australia competing under the Porsche rolling museum initiative. Geistdoerfer will complete the fairytale by re-uniting with Röhrl in the navigator’s seat.

Reminiscing about the 1981 San Remo Rally, Röhrl siad, “That rally is one of the most memorable for me, for sure. We were not supposed to be competitive in the San Remo because the stages were very difficult and the all-wheel drive Audi had much better grip and more power than our 911 SC.

“But we pushed and pushed and pushed … and finally something broke on the car on the final tarmac stages when I thought we were going to win the rally.”

“We only entered that 911 SC in one rally, the San Remo. It was a last-minute thing. Some engineers at Porsche helped prepare this car for me because I was without a drive,” said Röhrl.

“Then more than 25 years later Porsche informs me this fabulous car has been found in somebody’s garage. It has been restored and now we will bring it to Targa(Tasmania) in what will be a very special reunion. I am so looking forward to it.”

And so are we. AUSmotive will be back at Targa Tasmania this year working as support crew, so we’ll be sure to keep an eye out for Walter and his classic Porsche.

[Source: FoxSports | Pic: Porsche | Thanks to Graeme for the tip]