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Adventure Rallies 2019 part 2

Adventure+Rallies+2019+part+2
01
Feb
2019

Mixed feelings for GIVI sponsored riders and Teams after the first two Rallies of the year. The big disappointment was, of course, the 2019 Dakar Rally. The HRC Monster Energy Honda Rally Team was once again starting as the only real contender with any chance to break the  streak of KTM victories at the Dakar. Unfortuntely, one by one, almost all of the riders in the team saw their dreams shatter at some point during the race. First it was the top favorite, Juan Barreda: after winning the opening stage and leading the scratch classification, the talented Spaniard ended up stuck in a deep ravine and, despite several and desperate efforts, he was forced to give up and wait for the promoter's truck to finally get his bike out. That, unfortunately, ended his race. Paulo Gonçalves, just a few days later, had a horrible crash that also forced him out of the race. But hope was not lost for the Honda squad, as American Ricky Brabec, with a spectacular progression, won stage 4 and took the lead carrying a lot of momentum. For 4 days it really looked like Ricky could be the first American in Dakar history to have a chance to win the race. But that is exactly when disaster decided to strike: with only a few stages to go and Ricky firmly in command of the classification, his CRF450 Rally suffered a mechanical failure and the heartbroken American was forced to throw the towel.

Last among the big contender for Honda, Argentinean Kevin Benavides was penalized by the Race Direction for carrying extra notes during a controlled stage, therefore losing any hopes for a podium finish. Definitely the 2019 edition of the rally was one to forget for the Team.

The bitter end of the Dakar was soundly compensated by another GIVI supported rider: Alessandro Botturi.

The Italian off-road legend, big supporter of our brand, completed a masterful race at the Africa Eco Race, and added his name to the winner's circle, 4th Italian in the history of the AER to do so. "Bottu", aboard his factory Yamaha, took over the race lead since day 1 and never let go, controlling the comeback attempt of Norvegian KTM rider Pal Anders Ullevalseter. An emotional Alessandro, on the shores of Lac Rose, dedicated the victory to his mom, who recently passed.

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