Frenchman Guerlain Chicherit (Toyota) in cars and Spaniard Tosha Schareina (Honda) on motorcycles are the first leaders of bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal, the first of five stages of the third race of the World Rally-Raid Championship completed. , the only one played on European soil. Many of the “stars” of the Dakar confirmed their favoritism in the first 100 kilometers timed on the tracks in the municipalities of Grândola, Santiago do Cacém and Sines, but the truth is that, until Sunday, the teams in the race, of 30 nationalities, still have more 900 timed kilometers ahead. Among the Portuguese, the fastest of the day were João Dias (cars) and António Maio (motorbikes).
After the dunes of Dakar and the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, the teams competing in the World Rally-Raid Championship faced radically different conditions in the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal: Mediterranean landscape, lots of mud, also some hard surfaces and even sandy areas . Everyone was unanimous in praising the journey and the organization of the Automóvel Club de Portugal. A good example are the statements by North American Skyler Howes, official Honda driver: “Simply epic! A spectacular route, almost an Enduro section, with mud and different types of terrain. I had a lot of fun!”
Toyota dominates in automobiles
Guerlain Chicherit’s partnership with navigator Mathieu Baumel, driving the Overdrive Racing Toyota Hilux, was resumed in perfect fashion (after almost two decades), with the French duo winning the first stage with a 28-second advantage over the most direct drivers. opponents. “We cannot complain. The car is impeccable, the stages are very varied and we managed a good rhythm throughout the day. But there are still many kilometers to cover and this is just the beginning”, highlighted Chicherit.
Also driving a Toyota Hilux, Yazeed Al-Rajhi ended the day in second place, with the Saudi Arabian driver stating: “The race is spectacular, congratulations to the organization, congratulations to the municipalities for supporting this sport. It’s fantastic to drive in Portugal on these specials and with so much public supporting us.”
With the third fastest time of the day, Lucas Moraes confirmed Toyota’s supremacy on the opening day of the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal, with the Brazilian underlining: “Very fun, that’s what I can say! It’s always a pleasure to run here, we see a lot of people on the ground and that gives us great motivation. The car is perfect. Being at the top of the World Cup, among these legends… you can’t complain!”
Lithuanian Vaidotas Zala, with Portuguese Paulo Fiúza as navigator, started from a modest 36th position, but overtook several cars in their MINI JCW Rally Plus, until reaching third place ex-aequo with Lucas Moraes.
Also driving a MINI, four-time Dakar winner and two-time world rally champion Carlos Sainz was fifth fastest on the day, ahead of two-time W2RC champion Nasser Al-Attiyah. The Qatari driver, in turn, confirmed that “the stage was fantastic, with a lot of crowds, good roads and different surfaces. The machine is perfect, so tomorrow we will attack”, promised Al-Attiyah.
South African Saood Variawa (Toyota) was seventh fastest in the stage, preceding the first national pair, João Dias / João Miranda. The Portuguese had an impressive performance with the light and agile Can-Am, being the first among the national teams and the leaders of the Challenger category.
Joāo Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro were in good shape with the MINI in the Ultimate category, securing ninth place in the stage, ahead of Alexandre Pinto (Can-Am) and Rokas Baciuška, Can-Am factory driver.
WRC legend Sébastien Loeb, making his debut in the Challenger category, ended the day in 12th place, immediately ahead of Armindo Araújo.
Spanish dominance on motorcycles
After setting the best time in the morning Prologue, Tosha Schareina (Honda) was the winner of the inaugural stage of the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal. The driver from Valencia admitted: “The beginning was quite tough, with the sand sections, where I had a lot of difficulties. Then the floor got harder and I attacked. Despite some small errors, overall things went well and the strategy of starting further back was the correct one.”
Also familiar with the characteristics of the route, compatriot Lorenzo Santolino (Sherco) was one of the highlights of the day, finishing the stage in second position, just ahead of Honda’s American, Skyler Howes.
António Maio (Yamaha) was at a great level, being the fourth fastest in the stage and the best of the Portuguese, with the GNR soldier stating: “The route was a little different from what I expected, but it was fun. I didn’t make any navigation errors and it was important to end the first day with good feelings.”
Chilean Pablo Quintanilla (Honda) closed the top 5, ahead of Sebastien Bühler (Hero). The Portuguese-German, resident in the village of Relíquias, around 80 km from Grândola, was satisfied at the end of the first 100 timed kilometers: “I really enjoyed the route and the only problem I had was having to go back two or three times to ‘search’ the waypoints. But it was a good step to start.”
Despite being the fastest on the stage, benefiting from experience on similar terrain, on the outskirts of his hometown (Durban, South Africa), a penalty relegated Bradley Cox to seventh place. Still, the KTM rider highlighted: “I really enjoyed riding here. It’s tough, but fun, even when we get a lot of mud.”
Portuguese Bruno Santos (Husqvarna) was eighth and first in the Rally2 class, while Argentine Manuel Andújar set the best time among the Quad, with a 6m39s advantage over Lithuanian Antanas Kanopkinas.
A single selective sector contested south of Grândola, 193.04 kilometers long, is the challenge that the teams face in tomorrow’s stage (Wednesday), the second of the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal. A contested route in the Alentejo cork forest, but with some sandy sections.
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