Gonçalves world champion

OILIBYA RALLY, MOROCCO
Saturday 19 October
Breaking new ground
6th stage: Erfoud – Erfoud
Link-up 66 km – Special: 219 km

This morning, there was tension in the air at the start of the last special of the rally. Paolo Goncalves (Honda) had a lead of just 14 seconds over title holder Marc Coma (KTM) and they had 200 km of track left to cover with some navigational challenges in store. At 40km, Barreda (Honda), who set out in the lead, took a wrong turning whereas Marc Coma took the right one… and the suspense began to really build up. But in the end it was Paolo Goncalves who won the rally 3'44 ahead of Marc Coma and 7'39 ahead of Barreda to carry off the FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship title. “In the first part of the special, I attacked really fast”, explained Marc Coma, “and I found myself at the front of the field because Barreda and Sunderland had taken a wrong turning. I thought I could take the title but at km 180 I failed to find a hidden waypoint. I turned for 15’ and then I realised that I wouldn’t make it. I would like to congratulate Paolo very warmly because to race six World Championship rallies and win is really a great feat!” For Paolo Goncalves, it is a win with a very special taste. He fought all year against the best rider in the category, Marc Coma, six times World Champion and three times winner of the Dakar. What is more, he raced the five rallies before Morocco - the Desert Challenge, Qatar, Sardegna, Desafio Ruta 40 and Sertoes – on the Speedbrain before getting the Honda CRF 450 Rally for Morocco, another achievement that deserves respect. “I’d like to thank my team mate Joan Barreda, who helped me a lot throughout the season”, says Goncalves. “This title is also for him and the rest of the team, as the work we did together is just incredible. During the special, the stress was enormous as it was very complex to navigate. Several times I thought I’d won, then I thought I’d lost because I spent some time searching for a Waypoint... but in the end, I pulled it off! And it’s a great satisfaction to finish the season on a victory and a title with a new bike.” In the Quad category, the winner is Rafal Sonik who also takes the title of FIM Cross Country Rallies World Champion. “Today, it was a complicated stage with a lot of navigation and tough tracks, but I love a challenge and I must say I had a great time. Despite the stones, I didn’t have a single tyre blowout throughout the rally and that’s important because I didn’t lose any time. I won four of the six rallies I did”, explains the Polish rider “and I won the title with a 50 point lead, which is very gratifying for me.” Also in Quad, Camelia Liparotti won the women’s category of the FIM Women’s Cross Country Rallies World Championship, finishing second and first woman in the Morocco Rally . “On the third day, I front-flipped the quad on a hump against the light”, says Camelia. “The quad fell on its wheels but I hurt my ribs. I gritted my teeth to win the women’s category of the World Championship for the fifth time! I am very involved in promoting the quad category and especially the women’s section, and I hope that in the future there will be more women riding in rally races.” AMADLOZI Edition - Communication