Merzouga Rally: Sherco TVS Riders In Top 10

It was a good day for Sherco TVS riders Juan Pedrero and Adrien Metge at the Afriquia Merzouga Rally, when the two-day marathon stage commenced. The stage marks the beginning of the hardest two days of rally. Sherco TVS rider Juan Pedrero finished in fourth position overall, while team mate Adrien Metge climbed up several positions to finish in sixth overall. The overall standings are still led by Yamaha leaders, but now, Franco Caimi has inched to top spot, with team mate Xavier De Soultrait in second position. In third position is KTM rider Gerard Farres, while Hero MotoSports rider Joaquim Rodrigues is in ninth position overall.

CS Santosh at Afriquia Merzouga Rally

There is more good news for Sherco TVS - Aravind KP climbed up to 16th place overall, but Abdul Wahid Tanveer slipped to 39th position. After a difficult stage 3, both Hero MotoSports Team Rally riders, started the marathon stage well with great intent and focus to gain back the positions they had lost in the sandstorm of Stage 3. Indian rider C S Santosh, too had a good run, maintaining a steady performance to finish the stage at 17th position, but he slipped to 20th position in the overall rankings at the end of the stage 4.JRod rode with great temperament and purpose to finish the stage at an impressive 5th position. With this result he has thumped his way back into the top 10 in the overall general rankings.

The Erg Rissani region known for its soft sands, which the competitors have not crossed since the 2014 edition, was the first test that the riders had to tackle before hitting the tracks again amidst the sandy mountains including a few steep stony uphill climbs. Due to the sand storm on Stage 3, the special stage of 274 kilometres was shortened by 80 km. During the two-day Marathon Stage, the pilots will have to service and maintain their machines without any mechanical assistance.