AL-ATTIYAH AND BOULANGER TAKE W2RC LEAD WITH VICTORY IN BP ULTIMATE RALLY-RAID PORTUGAL
Too late for inclusion in last week’s Motorsport Monday comes the news that five-time Dakar Rally winner Nasser Al-attiyah and his co-driver Edouard Boulanger sealed a hard-earned victory at the BP Ultimate Rally-raid Portugal, the third round of the FIA World Rally-raid Championship (W2RC), in Grândola last Sunday.
The Prodrive Hunter crew had to defend an overnight lead of two minutes 41 seconds over Portugal’s João Ferreira and the second quickest time on the final short stage enabled the Qatari to move 12 points clear of Carlos Sainz in the unofficial FIA World Rally-raid Championship (W2RC) Drivers’ Championship standings and lift Nasser Racing by Prodrive into contention for the W2RC Manufacturers’ crown.
Al-attiyah, who had a winning margin of two minutes 49s, won two of the demanding and varied stages across rural Portugal on a new event that also crossed into Spain for one special and a night halt in the town of Badajoz.
Al-attiyah said: “Portugal is almost my second home. I have a lot of friends here and I’m really happy to win this fantastic race. Thank you to all the fans and thanks to the organisation. It was a very technical race and we had to be smart. After the win in Abu Dhabi, winning here is very important because it enabled us to take the lead in the World Championship.”
Ferreira and his co-driver Filipe Palmeiro enjoyed a superb event over home terrain in the first of the latest X-raid Mini JCW Rally Plus machines and held off Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Lucas Moraes and Armand Monleón to claim the runner-up spot, despite losing the Mini’s bonnet on the final stage.
Ferreira said: “It’s difficult to explain the emotions I experienced throughout the week. We received incredible support from this unique audience in the world in a very varied and beautiful race. The tension was high because there was a lot of attention around us, but everything went very well and I confess that I didn’t imagine finishing in second place on my debut with this car in W2RC.”
Moraes overhauled Ferreira’s team-mate and four-time Dakar Rally winner Carlos Sainz and
his co-driver Alex Haro on the last stage. That pushed the Spaniards down to fourth position, the result also lifting Moraes into contention for a late assault at the W2RC Drivers’ Championship.
“What a great fight,” said Moraes. “Firstly, congratulations to the entire organisation for managing to put together this race. It is very important to have the World Cup in Europe. An overall podium and victory in this stage are important points for the championship.”
Despite Moraes’s third place and his fastest time on the final stage, it was a disappointing event for Toyota with early season frontrunners Guerlain Chicherit and Guillaume de Mévius struggling to make headway and Yazeed Al-rajhi having to battle his way back to fifth after a crash on stage three. The Saudi’s consolation was moving into third in the title race behind Al-attiyah and Sainz and three points clear of Moraes.
The Brazilian duo of Cristian
Baumgart and Gustavo Gugelmin finished seventh overall and picked up vital points for the Manufacturers’ Championship in the second of the Prodrive Hunters. They are registered under the Nasser Racing by Prodrive banner. Portuguese driver Francisco Barreto guided his Toyota Hilux to eighth but is not registered for the W2RC.
The second stage ruined Guerlain Chicherit’s chances of claiming victory but the Toyota driver - like team-mate Guillaume De Mévius who suffered brake and alternator issues - then aimed to focus on stage wins for extra W2RC points. The Frenchman lost 10 minutes crossing a ford behind a biker who was stuck and then he clouted a tree stump in a field and tore the lower right suspension triangle off the Hilux. Unfortunately, a second mechanical issue the next day sidelined the Hilux driver under the new Sporting Regulations. De Mévius finished in a lowly 54th, sandwiched between his two Overdrive Racing team-mates, Lionel Baud and Eugenio Amos.
Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Saood Variawa had been one of the early pace-setters in the Ultimate category but was penalised for three speeding infractions on day three and the Stewards decided to impose a two-hour penalty on the South African and disqualify him from the event, with the punishment suspended as long as there were no further speeding breaches. Variawa retired in any case with additional mechanical issues.
Can-am Factory Racing’s Rokas Baciuška and his Spanish co-driver Oriol Vidal secured a vital victory in the Challenger category and Rokas extended his lead over teammate Austin Jones to 34 points in the Challenger standings. The Lithuanian finished in an excellent sixth overall. Jones and Oriol Mena won one stage and were classified fourth of the W2RC entrants.