APRILIA TUAREG RALLY CHAMPION FOR THE FOURTH CONSECUTIVE TIME IN THE
ITALIAN MOTORALLY CHAMPIONSHIP WITH THOMAS MARINI
MARINI TAKES THE TITLE IN THE G-1000 CLASS ON HIS DEBUT WITH THE APRILIA
TUAREG RACING TEAM’S TWIN-CYLINDER. THIRD PLACE IN THE CLASS FOR MARCO
MENICHINI, BRINGING THE SECOND TUAREG RALLY ONTO THE CATEGORY’S FINAL
PODIUM
Milan, For the fourth consecutive year, Aprilia Tuareg Racing claims the
title in the 2026 Italian Motorally Championship, doing so alongside Thomas Marini at the end
of a season spent as absolute protagonists. The final round, held in Umbertide, saw the San
Marino rider secure the title in the G-1000 class dedicated to twin-cylinder bikes.
An extraordinary season for Thomas Marini, who captured the Italian G-1000 title in his debut
season aboard the Aprilia Tuareg Rally. From the very first round, the Aprilia Tuareg Racing
team rider dominated the top of the category: in Alassio, he swept every special stage of the
weekend, while in Olbia and Gioia dei Marsi he claimed a day victory, consistently maintaining
the lead in the overall class standings. Added to this is the historic overall victory on the second
race day in Gioia dei Marsi, demonstrating the competitiveness of the twin-cylinder machine
from Noale.
An excellent season as well for Marco Menichini, who closed out 2026 by taking third place
overall in the G-1000 class. His weekend in Umbertide was extremely solid, featuring two
excellent second-place finishes across the two race days that allowed him to consolidate his
position in the standings, putting another Aprilia Tuareg Rally on the category podium. Paolo
Pettinari also had a great season, finishing third in the Italian Rally Championship GPX.
The Aprilia Tuareg Rally bikes, developed in close collaboration with the Guareschi brothers’
GCorse, confirm their status as a benchmark, demonstrating competitiveness and reliability on
all types of terrain and writing a historic new chapter in the Italian championship with the overall
victory in Gioia dei Marsi and the fourth consecutive Italian title in the G-1000 twin-cylinder
class.
THOMAS MARINI
“I’m really very happy to have managed to win the Italian Motorally title in the G-1000 category,
especially because it’s my first year riding the Tuareg Rally—a new bike for me—which makes
it mean even more special. This also highlights the value of the Tuareg Rally because it proved
to be truly competitive. The weekend had a few ups and downs, but I never gave up until the
end, and I’m glad to have finished with an overall podium as well. The season was challenging
because the level of the riders is extremely high and keeps rising every year, making the races
very hard-fought, but I’m really satisfied with the result. I want to thank the entire Guareschi
team for their exceptional work; the bike was flawless and they always put me in the best
position to compete. Thanks also to the entire Aprilia team who supports us and gives their all.
VITTORIANO GUARESCHI
“It was a truly fantastic Motorally season. This year’s result was our best team performance in
these four years: we won the title for the fourth consecutive time with Thomas and secured an
important third place with Marco, bringing two Tuareg Rally bikes onto the category podium for
the first time. On top of that, we achieved an overall day victory in Gioia dei Marsi—following
the one in Bussi sul Tirino last year—and a third-place finish in the overall GPX Championship
with Paolo Pettinari. We are very satisfied, but now we get right back to work ahead of the
2027 Africa Eco Race. In Umbertide, we already started our lead-up to the race by running a
bike in desert setup in the FX category alongside Francesco Montanari. In October, we’ll head
to Morocco for testing and will then be at the start line of the Addax Rally to prepare the bikes
as best as possible, also in view of Jacopo’s return. The goal is to ensure he has the bike in
peak condition for the Africa Eco Race.”
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