As the OiLibya Rally of Morocco came to end,Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Racing Team closed out their season with Dakar Rally winner Toby Price taking victory in the final round of the 2016 FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship. Teammate Sam Sunderland was second and Pablo Quintanilla took third place.
Meanwhile, the Indian rider CS Santosh of Hero Motosport finished 21th with an overall ranking of 30th in the rally. TVS Sherco’s Aravind KP maintained his lead over CS Santosh finishing at 17th spot and ranked 26th on the overall standings in the rally of morocco, qualifying for the DAKAR rally scheduled in January 2017.
Toby Price, who finished third in the world championship after an injury problem in the early rounds, was consistent throughout the five-stage desert race and is in good shape heading into the 2017 Dakar Rally. He had some memorable battles with Sunderland as the Morocco Rally unfolded.
The Morocco Rally also decided the world championship title that finally went to Pablo Quintanilla after he and Sam Sunderland battled it out throughout the week. Sunderland, who last year at this rally picked up a leg injury that put him out of the Dakar Rally in January, put up a spirited fight for the title but was still pleased to wrap up his season with confidence ahead of the 2017 edition of the Dakar.
Matthias Walkner, the third in the trio of KTM factory riders made an excellent recovery from a mistake early in the week and finished on a high note. After winning the fourth stage, Walkner, from Austria, opened the track on the final day and led throughout the stage.
Results Stage 4 OiLibya Rally 2016
- Matthias Walkner (AUT), 3:38:00 h
- Sam Sunderland (GBR), KTM, +16 sec
- Toby Price (AUS), KTM, +3:21 min
- Helder Rodrigues (POR), Yamaha, +4:25
- Xavier De Soultrait (FRA), Yamaha, +6:36
Results Stage 5 OiLibya Rally 2016
- Price (AUS), 2:29:48 h
- Pablo Quintanilla (CHI), Husqvarna, +2:21 min
- Rodrigues, +2:25
- Walkner, +3:48
- Juan Pedrero (ESP), Sherco, +6:19
Final Standings OiLibya Rally 2016 after 5 of 5 stages
- Price, 13:06:35 h
- Sunderland, +7.44 min
- Quintanilla, +17:02
- Rodrigues, 19:05
- De Soultrait, +33:04
