NES Logo

First the bolt, then bold properly: Al-Rajhi and Gottschalk fight for World Cup points at Baja Aragón

28. July 2024

Further contributions

  • Despite setback: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk score points in the FIA Marathon Baja World Cup in Spain
  • Baja Aragón the expected rough, tight and tough challenge over 512.78 kilometers
  • Broken suspension bolt prevents podium result

Teruel, Spain (July 28, 2024) – Fighting heart required: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk scored valuable points in the FIA Marathon Baja World Cup at the Baja España Aragón. Last year’s runners-up had to fight their way back on the second day after a setback shortly before the finish of the first competition day. A sheared bolt on the front right wishbone was followed by energetic bolting on Sunday. The Saudi-Arabian-Brandenburg Toyota duo once again put everything into the final day and took one and a half minutes off the eventual winners Guillaume de Mevius/Matthieu Baumel (BEL/FRA, Toyota) as stage winners despite a puncture – and thus added five extra points to the points for the class result.

The Baja España Aragón is very similar to a round of the World Rally Championship, albeit much rougher and extremely narrow in places. Not only the material is subjected to an extremely merciless test, but also the drivers and co-drivers. Many turn-offs and navigation announcements coming in quick succession, sometimes with only 100 meters between them, demand maximum concentration.

QUOTES

“We got off to a good start at the Baja Aragón. On the first stage we got caught in the dust of someone in front and had to back off a bit. The second stage on Saturday also went promisingly until the bolt on the suspension sheared off. After this setback, we gave it our all again on Sunday and won the stage. Overall, we are satisfied with our performance.”
YAZEED AL-RAJHI

“The Baja España Aragón is known for being particularly rough, narrow and challenging. The technical, World Rally Championship-like sections are also a real challenge for riders and co-drivers. For us co-drivers, there is always a lot to negotiate – sometimes there are only 100 meters between individual points. It’s a shame that we were robbed of a podium result on Saturday with the broken bolt on the suspension, but I think we made the best of it.”
TIMO GOTTSCHALK

Pin It on Pinterest