ASTRIDE THE TWIN-CYLINDER FROM NOALE, JACOPO CERUTTI IS UNCATCHABLE AND TAKES HOME A FANTASTIC HAT TRICK
APRILIA TUAREG 660 WINS STRAIGHT AWAY IN THE FLEDGLING ITALIAN GPX CHAMPIONSHIP AS WELL
Riotorto (Livorno), 3 April 2023 - Aprilia Racing’s brand new project aimed at bringing the Aprilia brand back to big raid rallies starts off in the best of ways. At his début astride the Aprilia Tuareg 660, Jacopo Cerutti dominated all three race days which included the first two trials of the Italian Motorally Championship and the first trial of the Tricolore Raid TT, held this weekend in Riotorto, province of Livorno.
The Tuareg 660 - Cerutti duo had no rivals in the G-1000 category, reserved for multiple engine displacements besides 600 cc. After finishing ahead of the rest on Friday, valid for the Italian Raid TT Championship, the brilliant rider from Como astonished everyone with a peremptory brace in the prestigious Tricolore Motorally, unleashing an extraordinary performance, so much to contend for the overall victory over the much lighter single-cylinder enduro bikes.
In fact, Cerutti finished the Saturday rally in second position overall - just 25” from a win which would have been unprecedented for a twin-cylinder bike - and in fifth place overall on Sunday. This performance is a testament to the outstanding off-road base features of the Tuareg 660, as well as to the great job accomplished by Aprilia Racing and GCorse.
Aprilia Racing’s second Tuareg 660, entrusted to Francesco Montanari, was also a protagonist with a third-place finish in the Raid TT on Friday, with the podium replicated the following day in the first trial of the Italian Motorally. Montanari then finished the day on Sunday in seventh place, hindered by a penalty.
Jacopo Cerutti
“I’m extremely happy! I didn’t expect to be so high in the standings straight away! It is a great source of pride for me to have been able to win at the Tuareg’s début. We knew that we were competitive and I expected to be able to make a play for the win against the other twin-cylinders, but even being a threat to the specialised enduro bikes was a big surprise. We won even coming close to clinching the overall title and that is a clear demonstration of the bike’s potential, which is extremely high. The Tuareg 660 handles extremely well and rides great on mixed terrain and this characteristic helped me a lot in the special stages - very technical - which we tackled over the weekend. We’ll need to work ahead of the upcoming races with more flowing tracks, but we already know what we have to do to perform well even on the fast stretches. Competing helps us understand where to focus in order to make even more progress in view of our future commitments. Our development work has only just begun!”
Francesco Montanari
“I am satisfied because I started well straight away with third place on Friday and another third in the first trial of the Motorally on Saturday, despite a few mistakes reading the roadbook. On Sunday, in the second trial, I lost a bit of time due to a crash, but the important thing is that my weekend went on an upward trend. We worked well, making a few changes to the suspension, and now I have an outstanding feeling with the bike. I had a lot of fun riding. I feel like I can push when it’s necessary and Jacopo showed that our potential is extremely high. Being on the team with him is just mad motivation. I can’t wait to tackle the next round to try and stay even higher!”
Developed by Aprilia Racing with the technical collaboration of GCorse of brothers Gianfranco and Vittoriano Guareschi, the competition version of the Aprilia Tuareg 660 is outfitted with Öhlins by Andreani suspension, titanium SC Project exhaust, and specific Sprint Filter air filter. The collaboration with Metzeler is also priceless, as they are increasingly more interested in the twin-cylinder adventure bikes world and chose Aprilia to develop the products for a future commitment in rally raids. In Riotorto, Tuareg 660 won with Metzeler Karoo tyres made specifically for use in raid and motorally competitions.
At the top straight away in the GPX Championship as well
In Riotorto, the Aprilia Tuareg 660 proved to be a great protagonist straight away in the fledgling Italian GPX Championship as well, a rally format with simplified navigation - through GPS tracking - created this year to make the discipline accessible to the many off-road fans. Participating with basically a stock Tuareg 660, outfitted only with the minimum modifications required to tackle a competition, Paolo Pettinari took the win in the second of the three trials scheduled on the Tuscan weekend.
Yet another victory that demonstrates how much the Tuareg 660 is actually the new point of reference among twin-cylinder adventure bikes for all enthusiasts looking for a motorcycle with which to approach off-road racing in the easiest and most fun way.
Precisely for this reason, Aprilia will be on the paddock of the Italian Motorally with its own structure to provide support for all those who intend to participate in the GPX Championship astride a Tuareg 660.