Marc Coma of Spain wins his eighth career Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge after a sand storm blows away the final stage; American Ricky Brabec finishes fifth.
Red Bull KTM factory rider Marc Coma of Spain was declared an early winner of the UAEMC Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge iu the United Arab Emirates on Thursday after race organizers cancelled the final stage due to dangerous course conditions.
A heavy sandstorm blew into the area before the fifth and final stage got underway, raising unavoidable safety issues for the riders, so race organizers elected to call the event based on the results from the first four stages. Coma was out front after the fourth stage, so the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge victory goes to him.
Coma finished the event with a total time of 14 hours, 49 minutes and 5 seconds over the four stages that were completed. He was 11:55 minutes ahead of his Red Bull KTM teammate Sam Sunderland of Great Britain at the end of Stage 4, and that became his final margin of victory. This is Coma’s eighth career Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge win, and he is the winningest rider in its history. KTM riders have won the rally in all but three years since the time that motorcycles were introduced into the rally in 1995.
“Today they have to suspend the stage because of the weather,“ Coma said. This meant that we returned to Abu Dhabi on the road. The truth is that the conditions were bad. I am happy and proud to have achieved this eighth victory in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. It was very important to continue in this way, especially after the win in the Dakar. We have picked up a lot of points for the World Championship, and now it’s time to rest and think about the next round in Qatar.”
Anything could have happened, but it is doubtful that Coma would have been toppled from the lead in any event. The calculating Spanish rally hero once again rode his usual tactical race, pursuing the overall lead rather than focusing on stage wins. He did win the opening stage, and he only surrendered the overall lead to Sunderland briefly after Stage 2 before coming back strong over and rebuilding his overall lead in the remaining two stages.
Team HRC’s newest recruit, American rider Ricky Brabec had reason to be proud as he finished fifth overall in his first FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship debut. The 23-year-old was the only Honda rider in the top 10, and he was poised to finish higher if Stage 5 had not been cancelled. American rally fans have good reason to be proud, as it is possible there is a new American star in the making.
“Unfortunately the storm was really crazy last night and this morning so they had to cancel the last stage and we had to take the highway back,” Brabec said. “Overall the whole rally was a great experience, and I learned a lot. I hope to come back and race a lot more and get better and better. I can’t thank the Team HRC guys enough for letting me come out and ride their Honda CRF450 Rally. Hopefully Joan and Paulo will be able to get on top and not have any issues.”
The Sealine Rally in Qatar will be round two of the 2015 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship. The event is scheduled to take place April, 19-24, 2015.
2015 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship
Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Results: April 2, 2015 (Round 1 of 6)
Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge Final Standings (After 4 of 5 stages—stage 5 cancelled due to sand storm)
1. Marc Coma (ESP)-KTM/14 hours, 49 minutes and 5seconds
2. Sam Sunderland (GBR)-KTM/+00:11:55
3. Pablo Quintanilla (CHI)-KTM+/00:20:16
4. Ruben Faria (POR)-KTM/+00:28:01
5. Ricky Brabec (USA)-Hon/+00+34:17
6. Mohammad Al Balooshi (UAE)-KTM/+00:44:48
7. Juan Salvatierra (BOL)-KTM/+01:03:06
8. Matthew Hart (AUS)-KTM/+01:13:15
9. José Cornejo (CHI)-Suz/+01:13:31
10. David McBride (GBR)-KTM/+01:17:35
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