Disclaimer:
As a service to the sport we all love and follow, Rally-Raid Network posts numerous media releases from a wide variety of sources on our website. Due to the large number, and some times short time available, it is nearly impossible to review each public release. These articles are written by reporters or press officers who work for various organizers, teams, drivers, riders, and other parties, and they do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Rally-Raid Network.
Sertões 2024: Vice-leader of the sixth special, Bruno Varela appreciates the balance between UTVs in the Sertões: “the rule has risen”
Info: Automatic translation of the Brazilian Portuguese version
The driver is also second in the overall standings and remains a strong contender for the category title
The special races between the UTVs in the 32nd edition of the Sertões Rally are considered by the drivers to be some of the best in recent years. This was the tone of the sixth special, which took place on Thursday (29) between the states of Bahia and Goiás, and had Bruno Varela and Aristóteles Fiuza, the duo in the Maverick R #110 who are in direct contention for the category title, as second-placed drivers.
Bruno and Ari went into the sixth stage with the aim of recovering their result from the previous day, when they finished in 15th place after the car's engine lacked power. With everything overhauled, the duo from the Varela Can-AM Monster Energy team set off on 218 km against the clock, 634 km in total. The start was in Luís Eduardo Magalhães (BA), with the finish in Formosa (GO).
It was a tough special, with lots of rocks and dust. In addition, the navigation required total priority, with many points that could mislead the competitors. Bruno and Ari managed to overcome all the obstacles and finish in second place with a time of 3h09min33s87 and a gap of just 16s32 to leaders Zé Hélio and Julio Cesar Zavatti. Denísio do Nascimento and Gunnar Dums rounded off the top three, 23s03 behind the winners.
High-level competition - With the balance that the category has been showing in the specials, Bruno Varela believes that there's no need to be too careful over the next few days: “The UTVs are very strong, very level and are having few problems. Everyone is accelerating as much as possible. The development of the cars is making everyone even more competitive. The bar has been raised too high, so caution is needed to avoid losing too much time or receiving penalties. But this balance is one of the coolest parts of a competition like the Sertões.”
After the result of the sixth stage, the overall standings are led by Nascimento/Dums, with 22h32min43s24, who are ahead of Bruno and Ari by just 43s04. The Zé Hélio/Zavatti duo, who are in third place and received penalties, are 16min33s88 off the top spot.
In addition to Bruno and Ari's good result, the Dust Family celebrated a late victory: after reviewing the results, Rodrigo Varela and navigator Matheus Mazzei, in the Maverick R #102, were declared winners of the fifth special, held yesterday, Wednesday. In addition, Reinaldo Varela and Túlio Taniguchi, who drive the Maverick R #120, took second place in the UTV Over Pro class on Thursday.
The 32nd edition of the Rally dos Sertões reaches its penultimate stage this Friday, in Formosa (GO). The competitors will face 497 km, 349 of them timed. On Saturday, they leave Goiás to return to the starting point, Brasília (DF), for the final stage.
Automatic translation of the Brazilian Portuguese version
Source: BestPR
Top-5 da 6ª especial, de um total de 8, Luís Eduardo Magalhães (BA) até Formosa (GO), 218 km
1º Zé Hélio / Julio Cesar Zavatti - Zé e os Caras, 3h09min17s55
2º Bruno Varela / Ari Fiuza - Varela Can-AM Monster Energy, + 16s32
3º Denísio do Nascimento / Gunnar Dums - Bompack Racing, + 23s03
4º Thiago Fraga / Marcelo Ritter - Dango Racing, + 2min29s36
5º Conrado Matsumoto / André Munhoz - Cotton Racing, + 3min07s53
Top-5 da categoria UTV da 32ª edição do Rally dos Sertões após a 6ª especial
1º Denísio do Nascimento / Gunnar Dums - Bompack Racing, 22h32min43s24
2º Bruno Varela / Ari Fiuza - Varela Can-AM Monster Energy, + 43s04
3º Zé Hélio / Julio Cesar Zavatti - Zé e os Caras, + 16min33s88
4º Tomas Luza / Flávio França - Cotton Racing, + 21min02s43
5º Fábio Pirondi / Enio Bozzano - Cotton Racing, + 26min45s10
Helder