The 47th edition of the toughest rally in the world started with a short but demanding prologue stage in Bisha, where Eduard Pons, accompanied by Jaume Betriu, overcame a tough day, marked by various setbacks. The driver from Lleida arrived at the start dragging the after-effects of a flu that kept him in bed since his arrival in Saudi Arabia, preventing him from testing the new unit of the Taurus T3 Max of the Nasser Racing structure until yesterday. This was compounded by power problems in the engine, which conditioned his performance throughout the 29 timed kilometers of the special.
Despite the difficulties, both physical and technical, the Pons Rallysport has achieved the 16th position among the 52 participants of the Challenger category, just eight seconds behind the Top 15 and one minute behind the leader. It should be noted that the result of the prologue does not influence the overall classification, but only establishes the starting order for the first stage of the rally.
“In yesterday's test we already saw that the car was running poorly, but today the problem was accentuated. The air intake temperatures were abnormally high, and the engine, by protecting itself, did not allow us to push”, said Pons, who also highlighted the effort of the team, which is working against the clock: ”The engineers and mechanics are trying to identify the source of the problem and I am confident that they will solve it. Tomorrow's starting position is not bad and, if we can perform at 100%, we have a chance to be in the fight in the first long stage”.
In his second participation in the Dakar, the newly crowned World Lowlander Champion in the Challenger category, and 3rd overall, was driving the Taurus for the first time, a vehicle that aims to be one of the most competitive in its class, so Pons remains optimistic about an event that has only just begun: “We are comfortable with the car, and the navigation during the prologue has been impeccable. It's a pity that this technical setback has limited us, but everything else worked perfectly”.
After the initial contact with the route, this Saturday, January 4, the Pons Rallysport will face the first stage, also starting and finishing in Bisha, which will have 499 kilometers, 413 of them against the clock.
Source: Eduard Pons / Mediage comunicacion
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