Sherco TVS and Hero MotoSports successfully completed the 2020 Andalucia Rally, with the Indian contingent enjoying a fruitful return to rallying action. Sherco TVS even bagged a podium finish, with Lorenzo Santolino finishing 3rd overall.
- Lorenzo Santolino finished 3rd for Sherco TVS
- CS Santosh finished 20th overall
- Harith Noah secured 23rd place
Known for its vast rocky mountains, the Andalucia Rally saw competitors tackle close to 1,000Km of racing across four stages. With COVID-19 disrupting motorsport activity around the world for several months, the event was especially crucial for both teams as they prepare for the upcoming 2021 Dakar Rally.
Sherco TVS Andalucia Rally results
Santolino seemed to find a good rhythm from the very beginning and consistently remained the top three at the end of each day. He ended up completing the rally in 3rd place, just over 10 secs behind winning rider, Kevin Benavides.
“Super happy to finish third here. Maybe the fact that I am Spanish and we were racing on Spanish soil was good for me but it is nevertheless important for my confidence going into the Dakar. The team has been working hard to develop the bike and it went really well here, so many thanks to them,” Santolino said.
Harith Noah faced a technical setback on the first day, dropping him down to 26th overall. He did recover some lost ground as the rally progressed and finished in 23rd place.
Rui Goncalves did make some rookie errors in his first rally outing. He took home a 21st place result and more crucially, plenty of key learnings.
Hero MotoSports Andalucia Rally results
Sebastian Buhler led the charge for Hero MotoSports with his consistent performance bagging him an 18th place result.
CS Santosh ran into some navigation trouble and lost some time as he stopped to help his teammate Joaquim Rodrigues in Stage 2. But he continued to find more pace and confidence with each passing stage and ultimately finished 20th overall.
"We have successfully finished our very first rally after the Dakar 2020. It was a long wait. It was good to be back on the bike but more importantly, it felt good to be back with my teammates. It was nice to start working again towards our goal of Dakar 2021. It has been a difficult year for us as a team and also for everyone else with the COVID-19 pandemic, so I think this is a very positive step to restart the racing activities,” he said after the rally.
A broken wire from a new test part cut short Rodrigues’ Stage 2. But he was able to recover from the setback and finish 27th overall.
Dipan Sur
