Jordi Durán, with a fractured femur and Marc Coma due to a mechanical problem retire from the race
Jordi Viladoms keeps himself in a firm third position at the 2006 Baja España Madrid-Aragón after the marathon leg the riders and drivers who continue in the race had to face today. Both special stages of the day, covering 270 kilometers each, caused many participants to retire, either due to crashes or mechanical failures, including the leader of the car class Marc Blázquez, Marc Coma and Jordi Durán.
On their arrival at the Zaragoza fairground, Slovaquian driver Jozel Sykora was leading in the car class and Isidre Esteve in motorbikes. The third and last leg of the race will be staged tomorrow between Belchite and Zaragoza (122 km.). Sykora will start tomorrow with an advantage of 13.48 over Carlos Sousa, while Esteve will have to continue with his close fight against José Manuel Pellicer who is less than two minutes behind.
KTM Repsol rider Jordi Viladoms has once again made an intelligent stage, keeping an advantage of more than 20 minutes over the fourth classified rider, Vicente Escuder, and a constant race pace, waiting for Esteve or Pellicer to make a mistake. The riders have faced a very fast route at the beginning of the stage on hard and stony terrain with several complicated water crossings while they were racing along the Teruel area.
Durán, returns to Barcelona with a fractured femur
On the other hand, bad luck went again to Jordi Durán, who crashed with his KTM during the first stage of the day. The bike fell on his left leg causing him a femur fracture. The Repsol rider was taken to the Miguel Servet Hospital in Zaragoza, where he will spend the night under observation and tomorrow he will travel by ambulance to Barcelona where Dr. Xavier Mir is going to examine the injury to decide whether hell have to undergo surgery or not.
And finally Marc Coma was not able to take the start today due to mechanical problems of the Mitsubishi. After repairing the failure that left him out of the race yesterday, the tests made with the car did not guarantee for the reliability and safety a car needs under such adverse conditions as those of the Baja. Therefore it was decided that Marc should not take the start today.
Jordi Viladoms: Im happy with how things are working out here because its my first time at the Baja and Im on podium positions. May aim was to cover kilometers and gather experience on gravel tracks like these. In the second passage of the stage the road had become rather dangerous after the passage of the cars and I already new about the consequences of Jordi Durans crash, so I didnt want to take more risks than necessary.
Jordi Durán: This crash has been hard to believe because I was riding very slow and in first gear. We had crossed a village and in a slow corner I lost the front end of the bike and it fell on my leg. I want to thank the staff of the Miguel Servet Hospital for the assistance we are having. We are going to spend the night here and tomorrow well travel to Barcelona to let Dr. Mir have a look at the fracture. Ill probably have to undergo surgery.
Overall standings Cars:
1. Sykora – Sykora (Mitsubishi) 9h.3432
2. Sousa – Schulz (Volkswagen) a 13 48
3. Larini – Musssachia (Mitsubishi) a 26 56
4. Palik – Darazsa (Nissan)a 31 56
5. Termens – Vilalta (Mitsubishi) a 38 10
Overall standings Motorbikes:
1. Isidre Esteve (KTM) 8h. 48 37
2. José M. Pellicer (KTM) a 1 52
3. Jordi Viladoms (KTM) a 15 44
4. Vicente Escuder (Gas Gas) a 36 13
5. Nicola Dutto (Suzuki) a 40 31
