KTM Repsol Wins First Stage Pharaohs Rally
Started from the plateau of Giza in Egypt, with the pyramids as background, the 130 teams of the 10th TOTAL Pharaohs International Rally took the cap to the South on the track of the oasis, direction Baharija. This is the first stop on the way to the Libyan desert. At the finish line of this stage and its 316 km, the Spanish rider Marc Coma (KTM Repsol) on his motorbike is the first motorcycle winner of this first stage of the 10th edition of the Pharaohs International Rally.The wind blowing out on the heights of Baharija barely cooled down the atmosphere. Arrived very sparingly at the finish line of the stage, the competitors hurry themselves to lay down in the shadow of the bivouac, accompanied by a well deserved meal and a cold drink. For this very first stage of the 10th TOTAL Pharaohs Rally, Marc Coma (KTM Repsol) honored his level.
Signing the first intermediary time with an average speed of more than 120 km/h, the Great Catalan perfectly mastered the tough navigation off the track, relegating his colleague Jordi Villadoms 6 minutes behind him, and Pal Anders Ullevalseter (KTM motorcycle) almost 8 minutes. The Norwegian was still very happy of being able to take part to the race thanks to the bike of his friend Knud Martin Storegjerdet. This one has indeed renounced to his only rally of the year to rescue his friend, whose semi-official KTM has been "stuck" at the custom office of Cairo after its shipping from Chile.
Fourth time of the day, Francisco Lopez (Honda 450) is occupying the head of this category; a category that he will leave soon after having taken possession of his new bike, an official KTM where he will be the teammate of Cyril Despres for the next Dakar. The Chilean rider finished in front of the Italian Polli (KTM) and the Frenchman Olivier Pain (Yamaha).
