Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team Enjoy Official Rest Day at Africa Eco Race
With five stages of the 2024 Africa Eco Race now complete, the Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team look forward to the event’s official rest day. After what has been a highly positive opening week of racing for the team, Alessandro Botturi lies in provisional second overall with Pol Tarrés close behind in third.
After claiming two stage wins during week one at the Africa Eco Race, two-time winner of the event Botturi now sits second overall. The experienced racer is no stranger to success at the AER, with the Italian confident of maintaining his early form through the second week of racing.
Even as a rider relatively new to rally racing, especially when compared to his Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team teammate, Pol Tarrés has delivered an impressive set of stage results throughout the first week at the AER. Finishing as runner-up on four of the five stages so far, the Andorran has been incredibly consistent and now lies just over three minutes adrift of the provisional leader in third overall.
Racing resumes on Monday, January 8 with stage six. A long liaison will take riders to the start line for what will be a relatively short, 205km timed special. The flat, sandy terrain will be a serious test for all riders, and accurate navigation will be essential in order to secure a strong result.
Special Stage 5 Results
Overall Provisional Classification
Alessandro Botturi – P2
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team
“Today is rest day and the first week is over. So far, it’s been a very good race until now and I haven’t made any big mistakes. The level of the competition is very high and I’m lying second in the overall classification, just over two minutes behind the leader. Tomorrow I will open the stage and for sure it won’t be easy. I think in Mauritania the race will change a lot. We need to be careful and be precise with the navigation, save some energy, and not push too hard. I’m excited for week two and I can’t wait to get started.”
Pol Tarrés – P3
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team
“The first week at the Africa Eco Race has been really nice for me. I never expected to be battling for first overall so it’s clearly going very well. I’m really happy with my riding, navigation, and my bike of course. The team are working really hard and things are going very well. Every day I learn something new about rally racing and I hope I can continue like this into next week.”
Marc Bourgeois
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team – Team Manager
“It’s been a really strong first week for the team and I’m really excited about how well the riders are performing. As the race enters Mauritania for week two, the conditions will be a lot different with higher speeds and a lot more sand, so precise navigation will be very important. The rest day allows the team and riders to relax a little bit and prepare for the upcoming stages. We have seven days to go and the race is far from over. Both riders are well placed in the overall classification and I’m excited to see what they can do next week.”
