Heartbreak for Botturi as Bad Luck Costs Him Victory at Africa Eco Race

The 16th Edition of the Africa Eco Race involved one of the most incredible two-way duels for victory in rally raid history. Botturi and his rival Jacopo Cerutti, also on a twin-cylinder adventure bike, had been inseparable all race, with the lead changing hands on almost every stage and the duo opening up a considerable advantage over the rest of the field.

Botturi, who had been racing alone since his teammate Pol Tarrés crashed out of the rally on the second day, had three stage victories to his name compared to his compatriot’s four and came into Saturday’s action with a nine-second lead over his rival in the general classification.

The stage itself consisted of a 317 km liaison from Nouakchott in Mauritania across the border into Senegal before the demanding and tricky 82 km special, the last that counted towards the general classification, which ended in Mpal. Having the advantage of starting second, three minutes behind Cerutti, Botturi was absolutely flying through the Sahelian savannah on his Ténéré World Raid GYTR in his bid for victory.

Botturi had to stop a couple of times to untangle the netting and remove the worst of the plastic from his drivetrain and brakes, losing vital time. Remounting and pushing to the maximum as he demonstrated his unbelievable determination, he managed to get his bike to the finish line in a time of one hour, two minutes, and 29 seconds, but, crucially, 35 seconds behind Cerutti. This meant that, despite a herculean effort, the Italian had missed out on winning his third AER by just 26 seconds after a distance of 5287 km and over 36 hours of racing.

Despite being distraught at the manner and margin of his loss, he immediately congratulated his rival at the finish line, showcasing the incredible sportsmanship and respect between them both and highlighting the true spirit of rally.

Exhibiting the incredible reliability and competitiveness of the standard Ténéré World Raid with the three-stage GYTR Kit fitted, there were four more Yamahas that made it to the finish across some of the harshest and most demanding terrain on the planet, with Ténéré Spirit Experience riders Thierry Traccan (24th), Christophe Meilat (28th), Laurent Cochet (44th), Nicholas Charlier (48th), who won Stage 5 in spectacular fashion, and Jarno D’Orsogna (50th) completing the race.

Africa Eco Race Stage 11 Results

Africa Eco Race General Classification After Stage 11

Alessandro Botturi – P2 Overall – 36h15m36s
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team
“What can I say? It was an incredible battle all rally with Jacopo, and we came so close to winning, but it was not meant to be. To suffer such lousy luck is unfortunate, but this can happen in rally. I was pushing as hard as I could, and everything was going to plan until about 20 km before the end of the stage; some plastic netting came from nowhere and got caught up in my bike. I tried my best to remove it, stopping a couple of times and losing time before I was able to get to the end. Sadly, it meant I had missed out on the win by just 26 seconds after a really long and challenging rally. I would like to congratulate Jacopo and his team on the victory and a fantastic race. It was one of the toughest battles of my career, and I have nothing but respect for him. I also want to thank the entire Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team for doing an incredible job all rally, and Yamaha Motor Europe for their faith in me. The bike has been perfect, and apart from today, everything had gone according to plan, but you can be sure we will return even stronger next year.

Marc Bourgeois
Ténéré Yamaha Rally Team – Team Manager
“It was an incredible end to an amazing race. Unfortunately, we finished second, but in rally, anything can happen, as was proved today. Alessandro rode superbly and gave it absolutely everything, but by some pure bad luck, he was denied victory at the very last moment. Honestly, what happened was a freak accident, and no one could have done anything to prevent it, but that still doesn’t make losing out in this manner any easier. Congratulations to Jacopo on an incredible race; whoever won would have deserved it fully, as it is one of the closest and most epic rally raid finishes of all time. There is still the final stage, where we will end the race by the famous Lac Rose, which is steeped in racing history. Obviously, we would have preferred to arrive there as winners, but the whole team can be very proud of what they have achieved, and we will come back stronger.”