Cyril Despres is the new leader in the Sertões International (foto: Marcelo Maragni)
Cyril Despres is the new leader in the general classification of the 2011 Sertões International Rally. After having won the first lego f the marathon, which took place this Sunday between Porto Nacional (TO) and Lizarda (TO) and having counted on navigation problems by the Brazilian riders, the Frenchman took over the lead.
The first three to start on the motorbikes lost time during the special. The Portuguese rider, Paulo Gonçalves, who opened the stage, got lost around kilometer 50. I got the wrong path, but the next reference that was a fence coincided with the road book and I was sure that I was in the right place. One kilometer later, it no longer coincided with the road book, so I had to go back, narrates the rider, who is now in fourth place in the general classification. Afterwards I tried to complete the test with no errors and I managed to. Todays track was fast and dangerous, and if one to hit a pot hole at 140km/h, things can get hairy.
Ike Klaumann was right behind, the former second place in the general classification, who also took time to get back on the right track. I got quite lost, for at least 20 minutes. I went back to the place where I had left the route, and I found lots of competitors going on the wrong side of the road, I signaled for them to turn back. But I also couldnt find the way. I went and came back along the same track two or three times before finding the right reference, states the Brazilian, who dropped to sixth place in the accumulated classification.
Zanol worried
Felipe Zanol woke up this Sunday morning as leader in the rally, but he had a fall that took precious minutes off and lost him the top place. On a downhill with jumps, I tried to join one hump to another and I ended up falling. It damaged the back of the motorbike a bit, but with no greater problems, but I must have lost about five minutes. I had a good advantage in the lead but I lost it all this stage, he laments.
With the victory, Despres has an accumulated time of 15h06min33 up until now, with a penalization of four minutes. Even so, he has a 40 second advantage over David Casteu, second place also in todays stage. Felipe Zanol continues as the best Brazilian in the test, but now, around one minute and a half behind the leader. Paulo Gonçalves and Dário Julio complete the first five places.
Despres says that he felt more at home in the fifth stage of the rally. Today was a typial rally day, more like the desert stretches that I am used to in other tests. Today was the right day to take over the lead, and I was well focused on the trail, celebrated the Frenchman, who went on to add that he drank almost five liters of water during the special.
On arriving in Lizarda (TO), the competitors left their vehicles in a closed park, without maintenance until tomorrows start up. This Mondays stage goes to Balsa (MA), with 436 kilometers in total, being 428 of timed stretch.
* Andrei Spinassé collaborated, straight from Lizarda (TO)
Este texto foi escrito por: Daniel Costa*