Walkner takes the lead

The fact is that each stage of the Sardegna Rally Race is paitend with the colors of the guaranteed controlled origin strong competition. The Rally is tough, very tough for Riders, mechanics and motorcycles, and strongly delicate for that sense of gnawing uncertainty that permeates every kilometer. Iof course, it is a race built to be a reference in the World Championship, and is the only European witnessof that kind of spectacular discipline.

Let's recap. The first day Paulo Gonçalves was the fastest, but the next night, rereading the GPS tracks of the competitors, it was discovered that the Portuguese had "cut" the path, a little carelessness. Nothing premeditated, of course, but by consequence young Spaniard Armand Leon, almost ignored, passed him obtaining the leadership. The second day of the Rally Alessandro Botturi attacked and overturned the blatantly unfavorable situation in which he found himself on the eve. The Giant of Lumezzane recovered five minutes and gained the head of the Race. Armand Monleon was "there", and Marc Coma, the ace of aces specialties, "controlled". Botturi, however, carried the most important task the third day, managing to contain the disadvantage of a bad starting order, a unavoidable "sacrifice" for stage winners. The "Bottu" was still leading the Sardegna Rally Race, Coma made a mistake that pushed him away from the podium, and the only one to resist the Italian champion was Austrian Matthias Walkner. In short, Botturi was in a situation to be reckoned with, but very beneficial for the final two stages of the Marathon of Bike Village.

Summed up the past, here we are at present. Fourth stage. The plot twist. 25 km around the end of the first special stage of the day, that of Talachè, less than a hundred kilometers. Botturi is virtually in the lead, but his bike suddenly "discards", the rear tire does not hold anymore. It is a type of defect of the mousse, those "sausages" that replace the inner tube to avoid punctures, who occasionally sticks out, no logic, no real reason. But the damage is disastrous. The rear mousse of the Yamaha of Botturi is destroyed, the tire comes off the rim and, inevitably, there is no other option outside of the withdrawal. The epilogue is like a kind of cruel fate, Botturi is "out". Good race, so far, great, but the adventure of the last year winner of the Sardegna Rally Race stops there.

Everything changes. Walkner wins the first special stage, and then also win the stage, Monleon wins the second, Sos Littos of fifty kilometers, and the two young Riders, both a revelation of the eighth edition, control the Sardegna Rally Race. The Spaniard is five minutes from the Austrian, and right behind, a little more than a minute away, here is the reappearance of the third KTM, that of "His Majesty" Marc Coma, back to the provisional podium. Meanwhile, serenely around the 30th position Calos Checa, the novice champion from another world, the Superbike. Enjoys the Sardegna Rally Race.

Now it remains to play the last stage, the '"ring" of San Teodoro with two special stages, "Altipiani" and "Sant’Anna", a total of 140 kilometers. That the night brings counsel, and that anyone can think of to say that "the die is cast!"