Raid da Ferraria was valid for the Portuguese Moto, Quad and SSV Championships (CNTT) - Image Gallery available here
Mini Baja Championship, Polaris RZR Trophy, YXZ 1000R Cup and Villain Cup Trophy livened up the day
Martim Ventura on a Husqvarna in the motorcycles, Rodrigo Alves on a Yamaha in the Quad and Sérgio Baptista on a Can-Am in the SSV were the big winners of the XXXVI Raid Ferraria, a race organized by the Ferraria Club and the third stage of the 2024 National Cross-Country Championship.
With 150 teams entered in a program that also included the Mini Baja Championship, Polaris Trophy, YXZ 1000R Cup and Villain Cup Trophy, the Raid Ferraria included a prologue and a double passage through a 153 km long selective sector, a route that used tracks from the municipalities of Gavião, Abrantes and Ponte de Sor.
MOTO: Martim Ventura returns to winning ways
In the motorcycle race, Martim Ventura returned to winning ways, winning the prologue and fastest in both selective sectors. A problem with the steering damper at the start of SS1 prevented the national champion from fighting for the win and he was “limited” to 2nd place. Podium for Bruno Santos ahead of a returning Gustavo Gaudêncio in Honda. The top five was completed by Micael Simão on a GasGas. With Martim Ventura triumphing in TT3 and António Maio in TT2, it was Bernardo Megre on a Kawasaki in 6th place overall who won the TT1 class. The next two finishers were Tomás Dias and Gonçalo Amaral, both on Honda, who joined Martim Ventura on the Junior podium. David Megre on a Kawasaki was 9th and Afonso Figueiredo on a KTM, 2nd TT1, rounded off the top 10. Christophe Lajouanie on a Sherco among the veterans and Ivan Ferreira on a Husqvarna in the Promotion Class completed the winners.
QUAD: Rodrigo Alves wins again and returns to the lead of the CNTT
The Quad competition was very close right from the prologue, with very small differences between the top five. Tiago Gomes, on a KTM, was the fastest, but only 0.1s separated him from young Rodrigo Alves on a Yamaha, who had won the opening race of this season. Third place went to Fábio Ferreira on ATV Racing, the winner of the Góis race, who was only 1.6s faster than Tiago Gomes. Next place went to national champion and championship leader Luis Fernandes, on a Yamaha, followed by former champion João Vale, on a Can-Am. The following day saw young Rodrigo Alves dominate until very close to the end, but a crash put national champion and championship leader Luis Fernandes in the lead, finishing the stage 30s ahead of Rodrigo Alves. The following positions went to Fábio Ferreira and Tiago Gomes. João Vale finished the second day in 5th place. The final stage saw an exciting duel in the fight for victory. Rodrigo Alves made an impressive recovery that allowed him to win, albeit by just 7.8s. Second place went to defending champion Luis Fernandes, on a Yamaha, who fought all the way to victory. It was also a close fight for the final podium position. Fábio Ferreira and João Vale finished 1.3s apart. Tiago Gomes, who had been fastest in the prologue, rounded off the top five, winning the Promotion Class. 6th place for Tiago Teixeira, on a Yamaha.
SSV: Santinho Mendes KO win for Sérgio Baptista
Among the SSVs, the return of local driver and idol Roberto Borrego, navigated by Daniel Jordão, was made the best time in the prologue. 2nd best time for veteran Sérgio Baptista followed by Luis Cidade/Pedro Mendonça, all in Can-Am, as were the first nine in the prologue. Next positions for Nelson Caxias/João Rodrigues and Herlander Araújo. 6th and 7th places for the returning Pedro Antunes /Nuno Batalha and Sérgio Silva. The following day saw Pedro Santinho Mendes/Duarte Santos, the championship's leading team and winners of both races this year, once again dominate, having finished 8th in the prologue. 2nd place went to Sérgio Baptista, 50s behind the leader, followed by Luis Cidade/Pedro Mendonça, 28s further back. On the final day of the race, Pedro Santinho Mendes' dominance went up in smoke in the second part of the section when he had already extended his lead over the second-placed driver, only to see his Can-Am come to an inexplicable halt. Sérgio Baptista then took the lead and finished victorious with a lead of 3m11s over the second-placed driver. He also won the very competitive Veterans Class. 2nd place went to Luis Cidade/Pedro Mendonça, also in a Can-Am. Pedro Antunes' return to off-road racing was marked by a podium finish in a race in which he finished 34s off 2nd place. The minimum difference between the 4th place achieved by Sérgio Silva, who like the winner was also competing solo, and the 5th place of the André Carita/Nuno Abrantes duo. They finished 1.5s apart.
The Stock Category was won by Arnaldo Monteiro. Jorge Lopes triumphed in the TT2 Class and Tomás Antunes won among the Juniors.
Victories for the Arnaldo Monteiro/Farinha Duarte duo in the Polaris RZR Trophy, Jorge Lopes in the Open Class and Gil Ferreira in the Stock Class in the Yamaha YXZ 1000R Cup. André Rodrigues navigated by Ricardo Porto Nunes won the Villain Cup Trophy.
The XXXVI Raid Ferraria also included the second round of the National Mini Baja Championship. Domingos Cunha, on a Yamaha, won among the Juveniles. Victory for Rodrigo Neves, on a KTM, in the Beginners. 1st place in the Children's class for Santiago Pereira, on a Yamaha.
The CNTT returns for its 4th stage at the Baja TT Lagos, which takes place from May 17 to 19.
Automatic translation of the Portuguese version available on www.todoterreno.pt
Source: Bruno Santos official press release
Photo: www.ImagensDesportivas.com
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