Francesco Montanari claimed his first victory in the 2025 Africa Eco Race this Wednesday by being the fastest in the eighth stage, a loop around Amodjar.
The 351km timed section was completed by the Italian Aprilia rider in 4h14m17s, beating Pål Anders Ullevålseter (Team Norwit/KTM) by a solid 5m05s. Guillaume Borne (Team GBR/Husqvarna) took third place, followed by Marco Menichini (Aprilia) in fourth and Guillem Martínez (Team Sénégal/KTM) in fifth.
It was a challenging day for the two riders battling for the overall win. Alessandro Botturi (Yamaha Ténéré Rally Team) finished tenth, 25 minutes behind the stage winner, while Jacopo Cerutti (Aprilia) came in 13th, losing nearly half an hour.
With only four stages remaining, Botturi has strengthened his lead in the general classification, now holding a 9m49s advantage over Cerutti. Montanari remains third, 1h44m04s behind the leader, followed by Borne in fourth and Martínez in fifth.
The ninth stage of the Africa Eco Race is scheduled for this Thursday and is a tribute to René Metge, named «René». It features a 400km timed section around Amodjar and has been described by sporting director Manfred Kroiss as ‘probably the most beautiful stage of this edition’.
The 2025 Dakar Rally is proving to have an extremely demanding first week. After the Chrono 48H stage came the marathon stage – two of the most challenging...
Read moreDetails
