Commanding Lead for Botturi After Stage 6 Victory at Africa Eco Race

After fighting a fever in the previous two stages, plus making a navigational error that cost him over an hour on Stage 5, Botturi made the most of the rest day in Dakhla to recover and come back fighting on the sixth stage. As the Africa Eco Race (AER) entered the second leg of the event, the 48-year-old was trailing Jacopo Cerutti, who had made the same error as Botturi on the previous stage, by one minute and 30 seconds in an epic two-way victory battle that has seen the lead change hands every day, with neither rider able to open up a gap of over three minutes over the other.

Starting from Dakhla, Monday’s action saw competitors take on a 394 km liaison, crossing the Mauritania border at the Guerguerat border post to the start of the 172 km special. Navigation was key in the vast open expanses of the desert as the competitors skirted the legendary Banc d’Arguin before a 172 km liaison to the bivouac in Benichab.

Determined to bounce back after finishing Stage 5 in 37th, the experienced Italian, now feeling back to 100%, put on a vintage display to dance through the sand of the Sahara desert on his Ténéré World Raid GYTR, and secure his third stage victory of the rally. Starting down the order, Botturi, who loves racing in the dunes, put the hammer down immediately, making up time and overtaking several of the bikes ahead of him, eventually finishing the timed segment in one hour, 31 minutes, and 45 seconds.

Next up is one of the most brutal and fearsome specials of the entire race, as the Bivouac moves to Amodjar in the heart of the desert. Massive dune cordons and intense heat await the competitors, who will complete a total of 468 km on Tuesday. Due to the lack of landmarks, navigation will, once again, be crucial. The demanding nature of the 392 km special makes Stage 7 one of the most vital of this year’s AER, and it could play a massive part in deciding the eventual winner.

Africa Eco Race Stage Results & General Classification

Alessandro Botturi – P1 Overall – 22h30m55s
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team
“Today was an important stage. After the rest day, I felt back to my best today, and I could push really hard on my Ténéré World Raid GYTR and make up time on the riders ahead of me. I was already catching Cerutti ahead of me, but then he had an issue towards the end of the stage, which allowed me to open up a nice lead in the general classification. We are now in the real desert, so every day is incredibly tough, as it is very easy to make a navigational mistake and lose a lot of time. It is nice to be leading, but there is still a long way to go, and we need to stay focused and keep pushing to the end, as anything can still happen.”

Marc Bourgeois
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team – Team Manager
“After the rest day, it’s always an adventure to enter Mauritania, as it’s the real desert, with vast open expanses and the endless nature of the dunes makes navigation much harder. It is a stage, especially after a day off, where you can easily make mistakes, so Alessandro did an amazing job winning the stage and opening up an advantage over Cerutti. It has been a long day, with the border crossing and over 700km covered. Now it is time to recover and reset again, as tomorrow is one of the hardest stages of the rally, and it will be vital in deciding the outcome.”