After Mohamed Al Balooshi dropped out yesterday, there were just 9 motorcycles and two quads at the start of the last Stage of the Sealine Cross Country Rally, second round of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship. The start of the Special was pacey and Adrien Van Beveren (Yamaha) crashed hard, but no major damage was done. His team mate Helder Rodrigues stayed with him until help arrived but Adrien is OK and the guy from Portugal was able to continue on his way.
In front of them, Pablo Quintanilla (Husqvarna), who left in fifth, attempted the impossible, overtaking two riders and catching up with Sam Sunderland (KTM) to put pressure on him. Thereafter, the two men rode together. At the finish, Quintanilla won the Special and clawed back 9’07 from the Brit but it was not enough and the KTM rider won the Sealine Rally with a lead of 9'38 over the man from Chile. “This victory feels good”, said Sam Sunderland, “as I worked hard these past six months to get fit again after I broke my leg. I wasn’t able to take part in the Dakar and it was tough for me watching the race on TV, both mentally and physically, as I was in rehab. So I am really pleased with this win after battling all week with Pablo. It wasn’t easy. I knew he would catch me but after that I was able to relax and ride with him to the finish.”
After a navigation error yesterday that cost him any hope of victory, Pablo Quintanilla finishes on the second step of the podium: “I’m happy with this result”, says the Husqvarna rider. It is an important race in the FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship and the points are worth having. It was a tough race against Sam, especially with the navigation. I made a mistake, but these things happen.”
Helder Rodrigues (Yamaha) was third in the Stage and also takes third overall. Salvatierra (KTM) finishes
the Rally in fourth ahead of Pela Renet (Husqvarna), while young José Cornejo had a scare a few kilometres from the finish where his motorcycle stopped in the water. He was unable to start it and lost 40'! He nevertheless finishes 9th overall.
In quad, Rafal Sonik (Honda) and Ignacio Casale (Yamaha) rode together but the Polish rider had to change his engine last night, which cost him a 15' penalty. The Chilean was already well ahead so he took no risks and won with a lead of 31'49 over his rival. He also offered Yamaha their first victory in the Sealine Cross Country Rally.
The next round of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World championship will be taking place in Sardinia from 4 to 7 June.
Judith Tomaselli