Martim Ventura in the Motorcycles, Tomás Paulo in the Quad and André Carita/Nuno Abrantes in the SSV lead the championships
The 32nd Raide TT José Alvoeiro “Paraíso do Todo-o-Terreno” Góis Arganil, the third stage of the National Cross-Country Championship run under the auspices of the FMP, has an entry list of 82 participants in the Motorcycle, Quad and SSV disciplines. The event is also a tribute to José Alvoeiro, who recently left us and was the driving force behind this competition and the Góis Moto Clube.
In the Moto competition, the highlight will be the return of national runner-up Bruno Santos in a round that doesn't include the champion and current championship leader Martim Ventura. António Maio, for his part, is renewing his commitment to the Trail Class on a Yamaha Ténéré. In addition to Bruno Santos, on a Husqvarna TT2, the top contenders will be Gustavo Gaudêncio on a Honda TT1, who recently won in Castelo Branco, Micael Simão on a GasGas TT3, who has been on the podium in both rounds, Tomás Dias on a Honda TT2 and Bernardo Megre, TT1 Champion, this year competing on a Kawasaki in the TT2 Class. Other notable participants will be brothers Gonçalo and Salvador Amaral and veteran champion Christophe Lajouanie, all on Honda TT2, João Duarte on Honda TT3, Afonso Figueiredo and Fernando Ferreira on Kawasaki TT1, Nelson Cunha on Kawasaki TT2, Felipe Fragoso on GasGas TT1 and David Megre on KTM TT2. Also returning is Fábio Magalhães on a Honda TT1.
Among the Quad riders, the trio that has been fighting for victory in the races is currently led by Tomás Paulo, followed by Rodrigo Alves and champion Luís Fernandes, all on Yamaha, and joined by names such as Fábio Ferreira on ATVRacing and Tiago Teixeira on Can-Am. Returning in a special tribute to José Alvoeiro will be the renowned Luís Pimenta, sporting the number 25 on his Moto Star.
Among the SSVs, the fight for victory promises to be very diverse. André Carita, who continues to lead the championship, will share the wins with Roberto Borrego and between them, in the absolute classification, will be Nelson Caxias. Three Can-Am drivers who will have Polaris drivers Pedro Antunes and former Moto World Champion Hélder Rodrigues as their main opponents. Other drivers to watch out for, all in Can-Am, are Pedro Pinha, Vasco Martins, Miguel Plácido and Pedro Grancha, as well as the returning Herlander Araújo and not forgetting that, driving a stock car, Rodrigo Melancia took the absolute podium in Castelo Branco
Three ladies took part in the Beira race: two on motorcycles, Maria Taranto and Daniela Mateus, and one on an SSV, Lara Brardo.
The 32nd Raide TT José Alvoeiro “Paraíso do Todo-o-Terreno”, organized by the Góis Moto Clube, kicks off on Saturday with the prologue consisting of 4.8 timed km, followed by a selective sector (SS1) with 77.3 timed km. The race ends on Sunday with the 246.5 km timed SS2. The total Selective Sectors are 328.6 km.
Source: FMP / A2 Comunicação
Photo: ImagensDesportivas
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