In the ninth stage, Jacopo Cerutti returned to win in the Africa Eco Race. After the Yamaha riders had been the strongest in recent days, this Thursday the Aprilia Racing GCorse man responded to solidify his overall lead.
The Italian took 4h27m14s to complete the 363.32km of the selective sector starting and ending in Amodjar. With that, he surpassed Pol Tarres (Yamaha Ténéré World Raid Team) by 2m05s, while the third was Alessandro Botturi (Yamaha Ténéré World Raid Team) at 04m01s – including a six-second penalty. The top five fastest riders were completed by Olympic medalist Marco Aurelio Fontana (Honda Genuine Oil) and Marco Menichini (Solarys Racing/Husqvarna).
As for the overall classification, Cerutti extended his lead and is now 7m04s ahead of Botturi with only three stages remaining. The top five remains unchanged, with Tarres following at 24m27s. Already more than three hours behind, Giovanni Gritti (RSMoto Racing Team Honda Oil) is fourth and Alexander Vaudan (Casteu Trophy/KTM) is fifth.
Top ten of Stage 9:
