Sardaigne Rally Race 2015 - Matthias Gagne.

The eighth edition podium is completed by Armand Monleon and Helder Rodrigues. Botturi, forced to withdraw during the third stage, has been unlucky, and a fall slowed Marc Coma. Great impression aroused by the young Riders. Besides Walkner and Monleon, Jacopo Cerutti is 6 °, and pull out the "ticket" for the Dakar 2016.

The San Teodoro-San Teodoro is a few kilometers shortened. A truck spilled along the path of the final stage. Only one of the two special stages is affected, but not the competitors, indeed. They cannot wait, now, to get on the podium. Armand Monleon would like to "slightly" change thje eve’s ranking, maybe in his favor, but Matthias Walkner is obviously not in the day of presents. Monleon wins the penultimate special stage, recover two minutes, and ends the last just second, behind Gonçalves. Walkner, now with the sole purpose of protecting the primacy from any risks, cares only to pass unscathed through the latest traps of the Rally. The first two places are frozen from the fourth stage, when Botturi has to withdraw, and the Sardegna Rally Rally Race open his door for the first time to an Austrian who climbs the final podium of San Teodoro. Matthias Walkner, 29, a former MX3 World Champion, is a discovery of Heinz Kinigadner, the legendary Austrian Motocross Rider, World Champion in 1984 and 1985, that led Walkner to the official KTM team making its debut in Greece and Morocco. January 7, Walkner has won his first stage of the Dakar, and on June 11, he wins his first date of the Cross-Country Rally World Championship, the Sardegna Rally Race. Try to think if the young Matthias is happy!



In the midst of so many young people in evidence, the "surprise" of the last day of competition at the Sardegna Rally Race is the podium obtained by Helder Rodrigues. The Portuguese, a "senator" already World Champion in 2011, had suffered the first few days of the race because of a flu attack. Recovering quickly, Rodrigues has maintained a "fair profile", but then, when te chance came, he attacked in the last stage and managed to get on the podium. Other "elderly" colleagues have been less fortunate. Paulo Gonçalves has given a great deal, winning two special stages and two stages, but "marched" all the rankings until the fourth place due to a few "critical" situations. Marc Coma, who instead had decided to control the race and chasing points for the World Cup that he sees in his head, he made a small mistake on the third Race, fell down on the penultimate day. The fifth place of "King" comes at the end of a match not fully satisfactory, and ended up with a sore wrist, but to see Coma racing in Sardinia, as everywhere, is an incomparable setting. The happiest of the "myths" of Motorsport is certainly Carlos Checa, the World Superbike Champion that debuted in Rally-Raid. The guest of honor of the Rally has attracted the admiration of the "colleagues", for the stubbornness with which he overcame all difficulties, including a small injury, and guarantees to have lived a really special adventure.

Youngs again. Jacopo Cerutti, 26 years old of Como, who was also at his debut, is the latest but not ... a newcomer. It has a great technique and already has the "intelligent race" required to excel in a discipline as difficult as this. Third at the end of the second stage, Cerutti has been delayed by a problem at the "box" of the road book in the next. Slipped to ninth place the he climbed to the sixth at the arrival of San Teodoro. Big shot, Cerutti won the coveted prize of the Dakar Challenge, a free entry to the next Dakar Peru-Bolivia-Argentina 2016.



The Sardegna Rally Race was a Rally up to the hype. Once again the Rally of Bike Village registered the season record of participants. The eighth edition has landed in San Teodoro with a sensational full of emotions. It was a thrilling race and fought, very balanced and above all, beautiful. The rally organized by Antonello Chiara and Gian Renzo Bazzu was also, inevitably, target of small problems, but that could not prevent Bike Village to give to the participants an unforgettable adventure to discover the incomparable beauty of Paradise that hosted them .



Sardegna Rally Race 2015 "recap". Aflash start of Joan Pedrero and Paulo Gonçalves. But the Spaniard, who won the 1st special stage, was penalized for "speeding" and drops to 15th place, and at night the re-reading of the track of the GPS reveals that the Portuguese left the path. No premeditation, of course, but there the penalty that led Armand Monleon at the Rally summit. The second day Pedrero, now out of the game, wins all, special stages and stage, but Alessandro Botturi, late in the first stage, attacks the Rally and flip blatantly the critical situation. The biker recovers five minutes and takes the head of the race, ahead of Marc Coma and the surprising young Jacopo Cerutti. Monleon and Gonçalves won the special stages of the third day, and the latter won the stage, but once again the most important task is accomplished by Botturi that, flying over the way manages to contain the disadvantage of starting one of the first and preserves the leadership of the Sardegna Rally Race. Coma made a small mistake in navigation, quitting temporarily from the podium, and Matthias Walkner leads by a handful of seconds to Botturi. Even Monleon stay in the stream. The fourth stage, the conclusion of Marathon two days without assistances at the legendary bivouac of Sa Itria, is one of the big plot twist. Because of a damaged mousse, Botturi remains without rear tire and is "out". Walkner and Monleon share the victories of the special stages of the day, the Austrian wins the stage and jumps over the Rally. Monleon is second and Coma get back on the podium. And then comes the epilogue of San Teodoro. Gonçalves wins the last stage, but Walkner, Monleon and Rodrigues climb on the final podium in San Teodoro.

Sardegna Rally Race 2015 Final Result:

• 1. WALKNER (Ktm) in 16:30'26;
• 2. MONLEON (Ktm) a 2'33;
• 3. RODRIGUEZ (Yamaha) a 5'05;
• 4. GONCALVES (Honda) a 9'10;
• 5. COMA CAMPS (Ktm) a 10'25;
• 6. CERUTTI (Honda) a 14'18;
• 7. VILADOMS (Ktm) a 21'29;
• 8. FARIA (Ktm) a 23'24;
• 9. CASTEU (Ktm) a 23'57;
• 10. VECCHI (Ktm) a 25'55;
• 11. PAVAN (Beta) a 30'44;
• 12. VAN BEVEREN (Yamaha) a 31'44;
• 13. PEDRERO (Sherco) a 36'10;
• 14. THAIN (Husqvarna) a 38'05;
• 15. GERINI (Honda) a 38'06;
• 16. LUCCHESE (Yamaha) a 43'46;
• 17. GRAZIANI (Beta) a 45'42;
• 18. QUINTANILLA (Ktm) a 55'37;
• 19. USLENGHI (Husqvarna) a 1:09'27;
• 20. KLYMCIW (Husqvarna) a 1:23'22;
• 21. CUCCHI (Ktm) a 1:33'58;
• 22. BRIGHT (Ktm) a 1:38'11;
• 23. METELLI (Husqvarna) a 1:43'41;
• 24. MANDRELLI (Ktm) a 1:47'20;
• 25. ROSSINI (Ktm) a 1:50'07;
• 26. AGAZZI (Honda) a 1:52'51;
• 27. VERKADE (Husaberg) a 2:08'07;
• 28. CHECA (Beta) a 2:12'44;
• 29. SUESSE (Ktm) a 2:13'24;
• 30. COLOMBO (Sherco) a 2:14'52

Communiqué Bike Village by Owaka