Jacopo Cerutti wins the first stage of the Motorally in Riotorto

CERUTTI MAKES IT A HAT-TRICK IN THE G-1000 CLASS, WITH MONTANARI AND PETTINARI UP ON THE PODIUM TOO

Three intense days with rain, mud and cold weather on top of a really demanding track, ending with a hard last day marked by various unexpected events that led to the cancellation of some of the special stages. But none of that stopped Aprilia’s riders, who finished the final race day with a total of three podiums in three categories.

The Tuareg 660 came first in the G-1000 class, ridden by Jacopo Cerutti who dominated over all three race days without hitches and with a fast pace – at least 10 seconds quicker than the other riders. The second podium went to Francesco Montanari who came in third. After a few mistakes at the start, Francesco made up time and crossed the line less than one minute after his team-mate. Great performance also for Claudio Spanu, who despite a penalty, showed great speed in his debut in the championship. 

The third podium was won by Paolo Pettinari on his Tuareg 660, coming third in the GPX class. And not only two-cylinder engines for Aprilia but single-cylinder too: on their 125 bikes, Fabio Pozzoni and Federico Salucci made themselves heard, always concluding their races with good results.

So the first stage of the Motorally Championship wound up very successfully for Aprilia. Thanks to the work of both the riders and their mechanics, there was always at least one bike on the podium, confirming the excellent work of the team and the reliability of the Tuareg. Now it’s on to Foligno at the end of June, for the second stage of the championship. 

JACOPO CERUTTI
“A really positive result. We’ve started straight away by winning like last year. I had a fantastic first day, ending overall fifth. The second day was more complicated because of the amount of mud but, despite that, I managed to win. On Sunday the victory was less clear-cut; it was a close fight right up to the last second. I’m not completely satisfied with how I rode because I didn’t get the time I was expecting, but in any case I notched up a crucial win for the championship.”

VITTORIANO GUARESCHI 
“It was a pretty demanding first weekend in terms of the weather. We picked up from where we left off last year, with Jacopo in great shape and winning the two days of the Motorally plus the first stage of the Raid TT as well. Francesco, on the other hand, had some trouble finding the right feeling with his bike in the first couple of days, but then he clawed his way back on the third day and was rewarded with a fantastic fourth place. All our other Tuaregs did really well. Our 125 riders - Federico Salucci and Fabio Pozzoni - made their debut with three heroic days, completing 500km and both crossing the finishing line. First time for Claudio Spanu too, showing his potential in spite of a few problems owing to his lack of experience. We know we’re fast, and that makes us confident for the upcoming events. The level of competition has increased enormously, but we’re still there, still the protagonists.”