Road rallies – 2nd Rally of Corsica: another planet! –

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2nd Corsica Rally: another planet !

Road rallies - 2nd Rally of Corsica: another planet! -

From the first recos, everyone could see that the fight was going to be severe: after Serge Nuques’ victory last year, the island pilots, ready to take their revenge in Corsica, succeeded in imposing their law at home. ! Report.

While last year, the Grolando-Basque knight managed to win in Corsica (read), the island pilots had prepared themselves extensively this year, and showed themselves ready to do anything to take their revenge !

No limit, maximum risk-taking and indisputable talent: they managed to impose their law at home and the Grolando-Basque knight must be content with a superb place on the final scratch podium and a first place in the French Elite championship. provisional … It was hot, but Grolandais honor remains safe! Report.

From the first recos, everyone could see that the fight promised to be particularly severe: seeing the excellent Corsican pilots recognize the specials down to the smallest square centimeter foreshadowed a serious intention of victory….

If a solid friendship has been forged between two of the best road rally drivers, the Basque-Grolandais Serge Nuques and the Corsican Laurent Statuto, the competition is still in order … Who would be ahead of the other this time around ?

Another leader, although new to the world of rallies: Julien Toniutti, who stood out on the handlebars of his 990 KTM during the Rallye de la Sarthe (read) and who immediately entered this very circle. deprived of the "top of the tops" !

This second Corsican Rally, organized by JMP Racing, offered the competitors a course of great beauty: departure for a daytime stage of two laps of a good hundred kilometers, with two stages per loop on the program: superb stages in the new, clean and regular bitumen … Rarely seen in rallying !

""I have never seen such beautiful stages", will even cut the Chevalier Nuques! That of Pont-de-Cassone, about 3.2 km, was rather fast and wide, while that of Zigliara, 2.8 km long, was very winding and narrow.

Corsican festival

Right off the bat, the Corsican riders announced the colors and won the best times: Laurent Statuto won in the first special on his Yamaha 450 WRF (2005 model, but superbly prepared by Kit Moto in Ajaccio) in 2’24.056, followed by Jacques Pinna (Aprilia 550 SXV in 2’24.208).

The only two "mainlanders" in the top ten are Serge Nuques – this time riding a muscular Yamaha 450 WRF from "Les Deux Roues" (fifth time in 2’28.109) – and … Julien Toniutti, tenth time in 2’29.600 !

Emmanuel Siaux, at the controls of his Buell XB12 STT (2’31.510), then leading the provisional from Sarthe, is only in thirteenth position of this first special.

Behind, the places are expensive and the main leaders of the 2008 French championship find themselves scattered in the 20, even 30 or 40 first places! Corsica is really another world…

The total pleasure of the Corsican mountain

The magnificent road course, very rolling, with good asphalt and summer weather, gives an intense feeling of pleasure to the competitors who cross the Corsican mountains. !

In the Zigliara special – the narrow one – it was again Laurent Statuto who had the best time in 1’55.984. The second time is still for Jacques Pinna on the handlebars of his Aprilia 550 SXV (1’55.993), then we find the rest of the furious gang of islanders with Frederic Franseschi (Aprilia 550 SXV), Joseph Campocasso (KTM 525 EXC), Jean -François Monti (Honda 450 CRF), etc. And finally behind, all the gratin (or almost) of the French championship…

For the second loop, the two leaders remain unchanged but this time it is Jacques Pinna who offers himself the scratches, a few tenths ahead of Laurent Statuto. Frederic Franceschi is just behind, followed by Serge Nuques who arrives in the same second as the Corsicans: on the strength of his benchmarks during the first round, the Zalduna Nuke makes the powder speak and tries not to be too far behind so that it is still possible for him to come back to the race leader tonight…

At the end of the daytime stage, it is the island rider Jacques Pinna who takes the first step of the podium for his Aprilia 550 SXV. The battle is tough with his compatriot Laurent Statuto (Yamaha 450 CRF), who will have to settle for second place a few tenths of a second away..

We are almost witnessing a "race within the race", so much the "top island pilots" get through each other, a chouilla above the best times of the "top continental pilots"…

Falls, lots of falls…

As for the Chevalier de Basquie – on the other side of the lower Groland, on the left going down – he is content to lead his Yamaha 450 WRF to 4th place. The pace is very, very high, and from the first lap we already count three falls in specials. In total, there will be more than ten at the end of the rally…

Let’s take the opportunity to wish a speedy recovery to Pierre-Jean Padovani, the brother of the organizer of this splendid second Corsican rally, victim of a heavy fall in the first special on the handlebars of his Honda 600 Transalp. Victim of several fractures, including one to the spine, his mobility does not seem to be affected. Good luck Pierre-Jean !

Fall also for the "little" Nicolas Derrien: a little under pressure with this third place in the provisional acquired at the Rallye de la Sarthe, he will be the victim of an error of assessment which will earn him an exit from the road in the special of Pont de-Cassone! Too bad for his Honda 600 Hornet which will end up a few tens of meters lower … but Nicolas comes out unscathed !

Pause !

At the intermission between day and night, the pilots have time to regain their strength: the two morning loops started relatively early, with a first start at 10 a.m., and it is barely 6 p.m. when everyone returns..

The mechanics therefore quietly prepare the machines for the night, fitting additional headlights, checking the machine, etc., before returning the motorcycles to the parc ferme, at the edge of the beautiful beach of Porticcio…

Night stage

The short night stage is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. with a single lap, barely shortened to more than 90 kilometers … The servant knight of Groland therefore has only two stages to try to return to seek first place and thus win, as in 2007 , the Corsican rally…

But Serge Nuques is a night owl: focused on this decisive nighttime stage for him, he has no room for error and intends to put all his professionalism to the benefit of the stopwatch, impartial judge! "I follow the same picture as last year: I give them a few seconds during the day, just to validate my bearings, and at night, blammm, I smash and I take everything !", reassures the Zalduna Nuke …"Except that this year there are only two specials tonight while last year there were double.", he notes, worried despite everything …"Too bad, I’ll put even more !"he concludes angrily…

But no one is safe from an error … A small error in the trajectory, at the end of the first long triple straight of the Pont-de-Cassone special, costs him an emergency braking which does not There was no need to be … A first night special a little ragged therefore for the Chevalier, while Laurent Statuto, imperturbable, slams a remarkable scratch in 2’26.822, more than 2 seconds ahead of the Chevalier (2’29.013) . As for Jacques Pinna, he takes third time in 2’31.089.

In Zigliara, for the last special, it is still a scratch for Laurent Statuto on the handlebars of his Yamaha 450 WRF "Kit Moto"! Serge Nuques hangs on the second time in the same second as Laurent (1’59.931 against 1’59.389) while Emmanuel Siaux, provisional leader of the championship, falls following a blockage of the front brake of his Buell XB12 STT … No sore fortunately, but it is abandonment for Manu !

The years go by but are not necessarily alike, in Corsica as elsewhere: this year, it was indeed Laurent Statuto the master. !

Final classification of the rally (scratch)

  1. Laurent Statuto, Yamaha 450 WRF

  2. Jacques Pinna, Aprilia 550 SXV

  3. Serge Nuques, Yamaha 450 WRF

This causes a certain stir in the provisional classification of the championship: Serge Nuques therefore takes pole with 106 points, Emmanuel Siaux finds himself second with 71 points, and Julien Toniutti takes a promising third place with 63 points !

Find all the rankings on .

See you in Ain on May 24 and 25: stay connected !

Marcus HIMSELF

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