– Rokas Bakiuška dominates T4 category and has massive W2RC lead; Pons in fourth
– Swedish duo of Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist narrowly miss out on T3 win
– South Racing Can-Am Team’s Martinez and Zille finish sixth and eighth in T3
South Racing-built Can-Ams dominated the Sonora Rally in Northern México with team drivers securing victory on four of the five stages in the FIA T3 category and a clean sweep of stage wins in T4 on the new third round of the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC).
As a result, the Swedish duo of Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist narrowly missed out on victory in the lightweight prototype category and finished second overall behind American racer Mitch Guthrie. Austin Jones and Gustavo Gugelmin came home in third in a South Racing-built Can-Am and lead the FIA T3 Championship.
Ekström, who lost a little time with a navigational error on stage four, said: « We lost some time in the dust from the car in front on the last stage and had a slow puncture and had to stop and change. But our starting position came from a little mistake on stage four. It was a nice experience to come here, very friendly people. A big thanks to South Racing. The car was working really good all the time. I look forward to coming back even stronger. »
Meanwhile, Argentina’s Diego Martinez teamed up with Uruguay’s Sergio Lafuente to finish sixth in the category in their South Racing Can-Am and the Argentine duo of David Zille and Sebastien Cesana earned a fastest time on the last stage into the finish in San Luis Rio Colorado on their way to eighth place.
The talented young Lithuanian Rokas Baciuška and his Spanish navigator Oriol Vidal dominated the T4 category in their South Racing-built Can-Am and won every stage on their way to a comfortable victory that leaves the driver 103 points clear of his nearest rival with two races remaining.
Baciuška said: « Our aim is always P1, so to get it done feels great. It’s been a pleasure to be here. The team has been working hard all week and given me a great car to drive every single day. »
Eduardo Pons returned to action with Monica Plaza in his South Racing Can-Am and went on to finish fourth in the T4 category after delays early in the rally.
South Racing Can-Am Team’s managing director Scott Abrahan said: « It was a great race for the team with South Racing-built Can-Ams winning four of the five stages in the T3 category and dominating every stage in T4. It was a strong performance from Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist. Unfortunately, a navigational error on the fourth stage cost them victory. But there were a lot of positives from the event.
« David Zille’s victory on the last stage sealed a strong return for the Argentinian duo. In T4, Eduardo Pons returned to continue his progress in the category, as did Diego Martinez who had a strong race in T3 and went from strength-to-strength to finish in a solid sixth. The team now takes a well-deserved break after nine months of racing back-to-back and heads back to Europe to start the Baja series in early July where we hope to defend our championship leads in both T3 and T4. »
As it happened
Action got underway with a 9.42km Prologue at the Autodromo Cerro Colorado, near Hermasillo. The fastest time in the FIA T3 category fell to Mitch Guthrie, who finished a tenth of a second in front of Portugal’s João Ferreira. Ekström came home in third, with Quintero, Lopez and Zille rounding off the top six. Jones, Gutierrez and Martinez were classified in seventh, eighth and ninth. Baciuška topped the T4 times from second-placed South Racing’s Can-Am’s Pons.
The opening 176km selective section looped through the giant cacti and deserts around Hermasillo. Ekström topped the times in the T3 tussle on a stage where Baciuška extended his T4 advantage over Pons, although the Spaniard incurred seven minutes of speeding penalties for two minor violations. Zille and Martinez held sixth and eighth in T3 in their South Racing Can-Ams.
Stage two was scheduled to run north for 286.07km between Hermasillo and Puerto Peñasco – the fishing and resort city on the Gulf of California – but was shortened to 161.96km om safety grounds. It was a good day for former Dakar winner Lopez and the Chilean won the T3 stage in his South Racing-built Can-Am to move into second place behind Ekström in the rankings. The Swede was third on the stage. Zille and Martinez were sixth and seventh in the T3 rankings and Pons trailed Baciuška in T4.
The third stage ran for 359.27km and was the longest of the event, looping through the deserts alongside the Sea of Cortez before returning to Puerto Peñasco. Ekström increased his lead in T3 to 5min 04sec over Mitch Guthrie with another fastest time, the Swede taking advantage of technical issues for Lopez.
« The Sonora Rally has started nicely for us, » said Ekström. « We had a really good flow with no real hiccups. »
Pons continued to hold second in T4 behind Baciuška, while Zille and Martinez were fifth and sixth in T3.
The second loop to and from Puerto Peñasco ran for 248km and Guthrie claimed the laurels and moved ahead of Ekström by 69 seconds in the fight for the T3 win. Zille lost over an hour on the stage and dropped back from fifth to ninth, while Martinez retained sixth.
Baciuška was again the class of the T4 field and took a massive lead into the final day after Pons suffered technical issues, incurred a fistful of additional time penalties and slipped to the foot of the rankings.
The final stage ran for 138.23km between Puerto Peñasco and San Luis Rio Colorado, one of the northernmost towns in México, close to the border with the USA. A sensational quickest time sealed eighth overall for Zille in T3 and Ekström confirmed second place behind Guthrie with Martinez finishing sixth. A clean sweep of stage wins gave Baciuška a comfortable win in T4.
The South Racing Can-Am Team receives valuable support for the race programme from Method Wheels, Tensor Tires, Motul, Bell, Jjuan Brake Systems, Lazer and OMP.
Sonora Rally – FIA T3 standings:
1. Mitch Guthrie (USA)/Kellon Walch (USA) MCE-5 T3M, 11hr 17min 24sec
2. Mattias Ekström (SWE)/Emil Bergkvist (SWE) South Racing Can-Am Maverick X3, 11hr 24min 02sec
3. Austin Jones (USA)/Gustavo Gugelmin (BRA) Red Bull Off-Road Junior Can-Am Maverick X3, 11hr 28min 10sec
4. Cristina Gutiérrez (ESP)/Juan Pablo Moreno Huete (ESP) Red Bull Can-Am Factory Maverick X3, 11hr 30min 02sec
5. Francisco Lopez (CHL)/Juan Pablo Latrach (CHL) Red Bull Can-Am Factory Maverick X3, 11hr 58min 54sec
6. Diego Martinez (ARG)/Sergio Lafuente (URY) South Racing Can-Am Maverick X3, 12hr 11min 42sec*
7. João Ferreira (PRT)/Filipe Palmeiro (PRT) Yamaha YXZ 1000 R Turbo Prototype, 12hr 16min 18sec
8. David Zille (ARG)/Sebastien Cesana (ARG) South Racing Can-Am Maverick X3, 12hr 59min 28sec
9. Annett Quandt (DEU)/Lisette Bakker (NOR) Yamaha YXZ 1000 R Turbo Prototype, 13hr 00min 31sec
10. Seth Quintero (USA)/Dennis Zenz (DEU) Red Bull Off-Road Junior Can-Am Maverick X3, 13hr 07min 02sec
11. Claude Fournier (FRA)/Szymon Gospodarczyk (POL) Can-Am Maverick X3, 13hr 26min 24sec
* denotes not registered for the W2RC
Rally leaders
Prologue Mitch Guthrie (MCE-5 T3M)
SS1-SS3 Mattias Ekström (Can-Am)
SS4-SS5 Mitch Guthrie (MCE-5 T3M)
Stage winners
Prologue Mitch Guthrie (MCE-5 T3M)
SS1 Mattias Ekström (Can-Am)
SS2 Francisco Lopez (Can-Am)
SS3 Mattias Ekström (Can-Am)
SS4 Mitch Guthrie (MCE-5 T3M)
SS5 David Zille (Can-Am)
Sonora Rally – FIA T4 standings:
1. Rokas Baciuška (LTU)/Oriol Vidal (ESP) Red Bull Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo, 11hr 51min 05sec
2. Rebecca Busi (ITA)/Sébastien Delaunay (FRA) Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo, 13hr 50min 16sec
3. Shinsuke Umeda (JPN)/Facundo Jaton (ARG) Polaris RZR Pro R, 15hr 38min 43sec
4. Eduardo Pons (ESP)/Monica Plaza (ESP) South Racing Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo, 30hr 38min 14sec*
* denotes not registered for the W2RC
Rally leaders
Prologue-SS5 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)
Stage winners
Prologue-SS3 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)
SS1 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)
SS2 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)
SS3 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)
SS4 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)
SS5 Rokas Baciuška (Can-Am)