Baja Portalegre 2022: Antonio Maio takes his 8th win by... one-tenth of a second!

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Know more about the municipalities where the race took place:   Portalegre, Ponte de Sor, Nisa, Abrantes, Alter do Chão

António Maio couldn't believe it. With his two babies in his arms, in Herdade das Coutadas, one of the emblematic stages of Baja Portalegre 500, the seven-time Portuguese champion received the news that he had just won the bike race for the eighth time, but now... by 0.1s! A few meters away, Martim Ventura was still catching his breath, after a remarkable performance, dedicated to his father, where he attacked like never before to try to 'steal' the victory from one of his childhood idols.

Absolutely amazing! By a scarce tenth of a second, António Maio (Yamaha) conquered his 8th victory in Baja Portalegre 500! This happened after 414,21 kilometres of timed courses, with surfaces that alternated between dry and muddy, crossing water courses and the usual difficulties in the tracks of Alto Alentejo. "I'm really happy", said the seven-time Portuguese Cross-Country Rally champion. “Making history in Portalegre is very good. I've already lost this race and the championship by one second. Everything has happened to me in this race. So, to win by one-tenth is a victory, even more because I am celebrating 20 years of my career. I want to thank my family, my friends and the sponsors who have accompanied me throughout these 20 years, some of them since forever. But I also want to dedicate this victory to Armindo Neves", a driver who recently passed away in the Africa Eco Race.

Although a tenth of a second prevented the debut in the highest place on the podium, Martim Ventura (Yamaha), the brilliant runner-up, could not hide contradictory emotions: "I don't know what to say... I have to be happy with the rhythm and for showing that I am capable in the coming years. Yesterday, I was the fastest on the track clearly, but I got a two-minute penalty... It is what it is, but I am proud to be here competing against Maio, who I´ve been following since I was seven or eight years old. Ten years ago I never thought that this could happen, but I worked hard and for a tenth I didn't make it. But we're going to be here next year and we'll see what happens."

A duel between two extraordinary drivers, from different generations, who entered the history of Baja Portalegre 500 with the smallest difference registered between the two first classified.

The lowest place on the podium was occupied by Gustavo Gaudêncio (Honda), while Miguel Castro (KTM) and Daniel Jordão (Husqvarna) closed the front quintet.

Results - Baja Portalegre 500
1º António Maio (Yamaha), 5h07m53,1s
2º Martim Ventura (Yamaha), a 0,1s
3º Gustavo Gaudêncio (Honda), a 7m28,5s
4º Miguel Castro (KTM), a 11m30,1s
5º Daniel Jordão (Husqvarna), a 13m39,3s

Source: ACP Motorsport / Baja Portalegre 500
Photos: Rally-Raid Network /  Imagensdesportivas.com