The Rally of Tunisia was back to normal today after the sandsstorm finally blew itself out, this caused the sixth special to be cancelled yesterday. And it did so with a victory for the Repsol KTM Team rider Jordi Viladoms. He was sixth out this morning but quickly found a fast pace and was soon in touch with the leaders overtaking them on his way to victory. Moreover, taking advantage of his most direct rivals` off day, he climbed two positions in the overall and is now fourth, 16 seconds behind the third placed rider, “Chaleco” López.
Marc Coma finished the stage third today, 4 minutes 58 seconds behind his teammate and winner. The stage was a positive one for the Repsol rider who caught Despres just after the 100 kilometre mark, and he made up the time he lost two days ago. With this result Coma is in a stronger lead in the overall, 7 minutes 16 seconds ahead of the Frenchman with four stages and over 1 000km of special sections left.
Tomorrow, the final day in Libya, sees the participants tackle a special of 365 km on stony tracks and with a lot of navigation, then there is a liaison of 106 kilometres as the riders return to Tunisia.
Marc Coma
“Today`s stage was very technical at the beginning, 150 kilometres or so, with a lot of stones and some parts almost resembled a trial ride. The navigation was quite complicated again, and we went so slow that we did not seem to be moving. Then the terrain began to open up a little, we found faster tracks and it was easier. The final part was even faster, but during the whole stage I paid special attention to protecting the tyres because there were a lot of stones, and I was worried about what might happen. Around kilometre 100 I caught Cyril [Despres] and we rode together to the finishing line.”
Jordi Viladoms
“This was a very technical stage with a lot of stones, but as I said yesterday I feel really good on the bike and I put in a good special. I started behind the leaders but at kilometre 40 I caught David Casteau, and at km100 I was alongside “Chaleco” López and Pal Ullevalseter. Seeing that I had caught them so early on and I was comfortable on the bike I decided to increase the pace and I left them behind, except “Chaleco”, who came along with me. At the refuelling we were very close to Marc [Coma] and Cyril [Despres], and 100 kilometres from the end all four of us were in a group, riding together right to the end of the special. This was through a volcanic zone, with a lot of rocks, typically black and very rough, and we finished the stage with the tyres about to wear out because the truth is that we went very fast. This was a very positive day for two reasons, one because we have overtaken two rivals in the fight for the podium and secondly we have created a gap there. It seems that the fight will be between “Chaleco” and myself, so we will continue to fight it out on the days that are left.”
