T1: Loeb stalls and Al Attiyah reaps the benefits
The FIA world championship has witnessed a complete turnaround! Almost 9 months after the previous leg, at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, Sébastien Loeb (Bahrain Raid Xtreme) arrived with a one-point lead over Nasser Al Attiyah (Toyota Gazoo Racing). With 3rd place on the Rallye du Maroc, the Qatari won one stage whilst his French rival (who finished 13th) tasted victory twice. As a result, the Toyota Gazoo Racing driver has swept up most of the points, meaning that he has now taken the lead in the world championship, with an advantage of 22 points over Sébastien Loeb (144 points to 122 points).
The best performance of the week should however go to Guerlain Chicherit. By winning the Rallye du Maroc, the GCK Motorsport driver has achieved one of the best results of his rally-raid career. He has leapt up the world championship leader board and now occupies 5th place with 48 points. To find out how it will finish and who will be in the final top 10, all eyes will now be on the Andalucía Rally.
T3: “Chaleco” keeps the lead but Quintero closes in
In the T3 class, the expectation was for a battle between the top two in the world championship: “Chaleco” López (Can-Am Factory South Racing), the leader before the Rallye du Maroc, and his closest pursuer Cristina Gutiérrez (Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team). However, the main winner of the event was Seth Quintero. The American driver (Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA) took control of the rally the day before the finish and was victorious overall, in front of “Chaleco” López and Cristina Gutiérrez. In the race for the world title, he still occupies 3rd place (on 144 points) behind the uncatchable Chilean (on 182 points) and the Spaniard (on 154 pts
T4: a tie for the lead!
In the T4 class, the suspense was also constant and there were many upheavals. The leader before the start, namely American Austin Jones (Can-Am Factory South Racing), only finished 6th on the rally and consequently drops to 3rd place in the championship (on 151 points), overtaken by Rokas Baciuska (South Racing Can-Am), who won the Rallye du Maroc, and Marek Goczał (Cobant-Energylandia Rally Team), a stage winner on three occasions. Strangely enough, the two men share the lead in the race for the world title with the same number of points (152).
T5: Kees Koolen grabs the year’s first title!
In the truck category, Czech driver Martin Macík sailed through this edition of the Rallye du Maroc. He won three stages and led from the start to the finish of the race. However, it was not sufficient to knock the leader of the championship, Kees Koolen (Project 2030), off his perch. The Dutchman tasted victory on two stages and finished 2nd in Morocco, allowing him to retain a slim advantage in the category on 186 points, 26 points better off than Martin Macik. Since it was the last leg of the season, the Dutch driver has become the first competitor to be crowned world champion this year.
Moto Rally GP: gently does it for Sunderland
Unbeaten this season at the start of the race following his prestigious successes on the Dakar then the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, Sam Sunderland (GasGas Factory Racing) displayed consistency throughout the Rallye du Maroc. With a 5th place finish in the overall rankings, the British rider has strengthened his position of world championship leader on 74 pts. He boasts a lead of 12 points over his closest pursuer, Pablo Quintanilla (Monster Energy Honda) who suffered a fall during the rally and finished overall 10th at the end of the race. As for Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy Honda), he climbs onto the podium, moving from 4th to 3rd place (with 50 points). His team-mate Adrien Van Beveren, a two times stage winner, did likewise, climbing from 7th to 6th position (with 33 points). The Andalucía Rally could see even more upheavals in the Top 10!
Moto Rally 2 and Quads: Klein and Giroud accumulate the points
Throughout the Rallye du Maroc, Mason Klein (BAS World KTM Racing Team) performed impressively, regularly keeping pace with the Rally GP riders. With three stage wins out of five and the lead in the overall rankings for the entire race, he triumphed with flying colours. In the world cup rankings, he has strengthened his first position (on 88 points) in front of his closest pursuer, Romain Dumontier (Team Dumontier Racing), who was third on the rally and currently has 60 points. In the quad category, Alexandre Giroud, the winner of the Dakar and leader going into the race, rode in a manner to protect his advantage. Although he finished 8th on the Rallye du Maroc due to engine problems, the Yamaha SMX Dragon’s rider still holds the lead in his category with 63 points. Most of the riders and drivers in the various categories will be coming together in Andalusia in a dozen days’ time for the final contest of the season, and it promises to be one hell of a battle!
Rally 3: a great start
For the 9 riders who set off behind the handlebars of their enduro bikes with increased range and equipped with navigation equipment, it was their first competition of the two legs that make up the FIM world cup. However, the rally turned into a demonstration by one of their number: Amine Echiguer. The Moroccan was victorious on 4 of the 5 stages held and always led the overall rankings. This victory on home soil allows him to take the lead in the world cup with the title also to be decided in Andalusia. Guillaume Borne (Husqvarna Morocco Rally) and Indian Abdul Wahid (Sherco TVS Factory) complete this first podium of the season.
Leaders FIA-FIM world rally-raid championships :
FIA : Nasser Al Attiyah (Toyota Gazoo Racing, 144 pts)
T3 : Francisco Lopez (Can-Am Factory South Racing, 182 pts)
T4 : Rokas Baciuska (South Racing Can-Am, 182 pts) ex aequo avec Marek Goczal (Cobant-Energylandia Rally Team, 182 pts)
Vainqueur T5 : Kees Koolen (Project 2030, 186 pts)
Moto RallyGP : Sam Sanderland (GasGas Factory Racing, 74 pts)
Moto Rally 2 : Mason Klein (BAS World KTM Racing Team, 88 pts)
Quad : Alexandre Giroud (Yamaha SMX Dragon’s, 63 pts)