Last Sunday, the Baja de Lagos crowned the winners of yet another edition of the traditional Baja organized by the Clube Automóvel do Algarve, this year covering new tracks in the westernmost part of the Algarve, Portugal's southernmost region and a well-known tourist destination for many Europeans.
The race lasted three days, with the prologue being held on Friday near the picturesque town of Lagos, and then two selective sectors, one on Saturday and the other on Sunday, traveling along the rollercoaster of the region's mountains. Starting near Sagres, the southwest end (or start) of Europe, the route then began its up-and-down carousel, also passing near the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, and ending in São Marcos da Serra, after around 160kms of tracks that ranged from very fast in the more open areas of the mountain tops, to very slow and demanding in the very steep, winding and narrow climbs and descents of some areas.
The entry list for the FPAK event, which included cars, Challengers and SVVs, was well-stocked despite some absences. In the case of the FMP event, the list of Non-FIA SSVs, with almost 50 entrants, also showed a lot of fight. The motorcycle and quad lists, on the other hand, were unusually short, especially the motorcycles, which were composed mostly of the strongest riders.
Below, you can read summaries of the FPAK and FMP races published by each of these federations:
You can also find our own image gallery in our portal www.imagensdesportivas.com, where we have images of near all the participants of this race, sorted by number.
CPTT - FPAK Event -----------------
AUTO: João Ferreira wins Baja TT Lagos
The third round of the AM I 48 Portuguese Cross-Country Championship was not for the faint-hearted. In a second-place finish, João Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro, in MINI JCW T1+, won the race organized by the Clube Automóvel do Algarve. João Dias and João Miranda, in Can-Am, fought to the end, but couldn't resist the 2022 National Champion's attack, falling just 3 seconds short of victory. Francisco Barreto, navigated by Carlos Silva, took the Toyota Hilux T1+ to a podium full of young talents who promise to enliven the coming years of the competition organized by the FPAK.
In a troubled race history, João Ferreira was even the best starter in the Prologue, achieving the best time and three valuable points for the title fight. João Dias, who had been second in the first timed kilometers, was the strongest in the first selective sector, achieving a comfortable lead over his most direct competition, in a sector marked by the withdrawal of the then leaders of the CPTT I AM48, João Ramos and Jet Carvalho. The reigning national champions, Tiago Reis and Valter Cardoso, were in the fight for victory until very near the end of the race, but eventually dropped out, leaving the fight between João Ferreira and João Dias. Ferreira, who had had a puncture the day before and lost more than two minutes to the leader, went on the attack on the last day and even managed to win a hard-fought victory. “It was incredible. We went completely on the attack from the first meter of the sector. We knew it was going to be very difficult, not least because the section was very T3-style. João Dias is an excellent driver and, even after we saw Tiago stopped on the special, we didn't let up. It was down to the last meter! We made up for lost time on Saturday and won a race we'd never won before, the last race we had left to win in Portugal,” said the driver from Leiria.
João Ferreira // Filipe Palmeiro - Mini JCW T1+
The Baja TT Lagos, which had a total of 58 entrants, was very well contested, allowing João Dias and João Miranda to win the T3. - Challenger. Tomás Gameiro and António Saraiva won the T2 - Stock category, while Gonçalo Guerreiro and José Sá Pires won the T4 - SSV category.) The pairs Cláudio Carapeta - Sérgio Inocêncio and Sérgio Mourato-José Pereira won the T8 and T9 categories, respectively. In the overall standings, João Dias is now the championship leader with 60 points, followed by João Ferreira with 54 points.
João Dias // João Miranda -- CANAM MAVERICK X3 -- T3 Challenger
CNTT - FMP Event --------------------
MOTO: Martim Ventura's third win
In the two-wheelers, National Champion António Maio on Yamaha began by setting the best time in the prologue, but the following day Martim Ventura was the fastest over the 158 km of the first stage's selective sector and now had a 1m20s lead over António Maio, which increased to 2m40s by the end of the race, with the Husqvarna rider strengthening his lead in the championship, also winning the TT3 and Junior Classes. Maio won the TT2 Class. Next positions for Bruno Santos on Husqvarna and Micael Simão on GasGas. Gustavo Gaudêncio on a Honda finished in 5th place. Bernardo Megre, on a Kawasaki, in 6th place, won the TT1 Class. Frederico Rodrigues on a Yamaha won the Promotion Class. Victory for Christophe Lajouanie on a Sherco among the veterans
Martim Ventura - Husqvarna
QUAD: João Vale wins and takes the lead in the CNTT
Absolute domination by former national champion João Vale in the Quad competition. The Can-Am rider started off fastest in the prologue. On the following day, when both championship leader Rodrigo Alves and national champion Luis Fernandes, both on Yamaha, were knocked out of the fight for victory by mechanical problems, João Vale took a commanding lead with a 4m advantage over the second-placed rider. He came out on top again on the final day of the race, totally dominating and achieving a result that allowed him to take the lead in the championship. 2nd place went to Tiago Gomes on a KTM, winner of the Promotion Class. Tiago Teixeira on a Yamaha was also on the absolute podium.
João Vale - Can Am Renegade 1000
SSV: Pedro Pinha wins his debut and the championship is very close
The SSV competition was the busiest and liveliest of the three disciplines. Roberto Borrego in a Can-Am recorded the best time in the prologue ahead of the Polaris piloted by Tiago Guerreiro. Pedro Santinho Mendes, the championship leader, and Sergio Batista, winner of the Ferraria race, didn't get any further than 12th and 17th, but that didn't stop them from continuing to be drivers to watch out for in the fight for victory in the race. And so it happened the following day, with Pedro Santinho Mendes leading at the start of SS1 and Sergio Batista moving into the lead by the end of the stage, finishing the day with a 1m48s advantage over Nelson Caxias, with Pedro Pinha 23s behind Caxias and Pedro Antunes 34s behind Pinha. On the final day of the race, the competition remained very lively with changes in the top positions. Pedro Pinha won his first race, finishing just 7.8s ahead of Nelson Caxias. A puncture relegated Sergio Batista to third place, finishing 59s behind the winner. A trio of veteran drivers at the top of the standings in this Algarve race. After having overturned the previous day, Pedro Santinho Mendes was fastest on the final timed special, giving up the championship lead to Pedro Pinha. The top four are now separated by 8 points. In 5th place overall Luis Marchante, in a Polaris RZR, won the Stock Class and triumphed in the Polaris RZR Trophy followed by Arnaldo Monteiro and Sérgio Vaz. Gil Ferreira in the Open Class and Rafael Caseiro in the Stock Class, who also won the SSV TT2, won the Yamaha YXZ 1000R Cup. Dave Catania won the Villain Cup. Gonçalo Guerra won the Junior Class in his Can-Am.
Pedro Pinha // Joaquim Dias -- CAN AM X
INFO: These texts have been translated automatically from the original Portuguese versions
Sources:
Auto - FPAK
Moto, quad and SSV-Non FIA - FMP
Photos: ImagensDesportivas.pt // Rally-Raid Network
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