In 1967 a strapping young driver, Alberto Ruiz Gimenez, moved from co–driver to his brother Enrique (noteable for his entries in the Monte Carlo Rally) to the other side of the equation with a Seat 600. Behind the wheel of the vehicle of choice for start–up drivers in local rallies and hill climbs, Ruiz Gimenez began to stand out as a young talent. That would take him, in 1968, to the forefront of competition in the FASA Renault team –with which he won the Spanish Rally Championship’s Tourist class with a Renault 8 Gordini.
In parrallel, another driver was also shining in that era. His name was Eladio Doncel and he began his career driving a BMW 700. Later in his career he would drive practically every Abarth of the time, before becoming a Porsche enthusiast and taking the greatest successes of his career with the manufacturer. In 1968, after various rally victories in events such as the Rally de Orense and Rally Firestone, Eladio Doncel concluded the season as runner–up in the Spanish Rally Championship.
Also in that era, José Manuel Lencina was turning heads. At 18 years old he was already well known for his passion for motorsport, inherited from his father and older brother. Before he had reached the minimum driving age he had already competed at hill climbs, participating in his first at Sotillo in Madrid. When he finally obtained his licence, Lencina began to take part in Spanish Rally Championship events with a Mini Cooper 1300. He would win the Castilla Rally Championship and take second in the Spanish Touring Cars series.
It would be Alberto Ruiz Gimenez, Eladio Doncel and José Manuel Lencina in rallying and Jaime Lazcano, Jose de La Peña and Julio Gargallo in track racing, who would be the focus of the Escudería Repsol–Jolly
Club’s activities in the 1969 season. The team was practically made up entirely of Madrid–based drivers, despite repeated attempts to bring Catalan competitor Juan Fernandez into the fold.
