The second day of the Sealine Rally in Qatar saw a group of five riders reach the finish basically at same time, among them Speedbrain rider Paulo Goncalves.
Wednesday´s stage, the longest of the four-day race, offered a distance of 416 kilometres, leading through a field of dunes in the beginning. The layout was then followed by stoney sections and some typical offroad elements. Being able to keep his good rhythm from the opening stage, Goncalves took the chequered flag in fourth place. The Portuguese stayed very close to his main rivals in the overall classification and therefore maintained his runner-up ranking in the rally. Teammate Quinn Cody, who is further getting accustomed to his new equipment, had a solid day altogether. The American classified seventh on the day.
Paulo Goncalves: "Today was another hard and exhausting one with lots of dangerous stone sections. There were plenty of turns and twists, which made navigation difficult. I managed to keep up with the lead group and we stayed close to each other. Tomorrow is another long day ahead before the rally closes on Friday. Times are close at the front, I will attack again."
Quinn Cody: "I was doing better under these conditions than yesterday and already feel very familiar my new Speedbrain 450 Rally machine. I had some navigation issues towards the end because visibility was bad due to a light sandstorm. All in all I am satisfied and looking forward to tomorrow."
Sealine Cross Country Rally 2013
Result Stage 2:
1. Lopez (CHL, KTM) 4h46m23s
2. Przygonski (POL, KTM) +00:01:39
3. Ullevalseter (NOR, KTM) +00:03:45
4. Paulo Goncalves (PRT, Speedbrain) +00:05:38
5. Coma-Camps (ESP, KTM) +00:07:35
8. Quinn Cody (USA, Speedbrain) +00:32:58
Overall Standings after Stage 2:
1. Coma-Camps (ESP, KTM) 9h52m44s
2. Paulo Goncalves (PRT, Speedbrain) +00:00:03
3. Przygonski (POL, KTM) +00:00:06
4. Ullevalseter (NOR, KTM) +00:00:14
5. Lopez (CHL, KTM) +00:04:26
9. Quinn Cody (USA, Speedbrain) +01:40:46
Communication Speedbrain GmbH - press.speedbrain.de -