On Friday, the participants of BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal had to overcome the longest route in one day so far - the athletes traveled more than six hundred kilometers and crossed the state border. The marathon bivouac is located in Badajoz, Spain, where the athletes will spend one night and the mechanics will have only three hours to work on the equipment.
CFMOTO Thunder Racing Team pilot Antanas Kanopkinas said after crossing the day’s finish line that Friday was an ordinary working day on the track. True, the mud on the track caused some technical problems: "A lot of puddles, a lot of mud. It was fun to ride on the mountain peaks - there were many dangerous places. Due to the amount of dirt, the brake pads were not performing as well as they should. I missed a turn a few times as a result, but no major crimes occurred. I'll probably get a fine for speeding - I missed the stopping point by a meter at the finish."
The athlete mentioned that the fight for the second to fourth places will be very tense. According to the provisional results today, A. Kanopkinas finished fourth, and he is in third place in the overall standings. His team-mate Gaetan Martinez finished third today and is in second place overall in the quad standings.
"Today was a sunny and long day. The special stage was divided into three parts and I liked the second part the most - the course led through mountain tops, very narrow, slippery and winding paths. We drove together with Antanas for almost the whole day, everything went great. The mechanics are working on the equipment and they only have three hours for that today, but it seems that it should be enough," said G. Martinez.
On Saturday, the participants will have a similar day to Friday - a total of more than five hundred kilometers, which will be fast and lead through the mountains. Athletes will have to drive through a variety of terrain for most of the course. Asphalt is waiting only in crossings. On Saturday, the racing marathon returns to Grandola in Portugal.