MOTOR SPORT
SILK WAY RALLY, July 9-16, 2011
For immediate release
Monday, July 11th, 2011
DOUBLE SUCCESS FOR MONSTER ENERGY
X-RAID TEAM ON SILK WAY RALLY STAGE
– Stage victory for Stéphane Peterhansel in Mini All4 Racing
– Krzysztof Holowczyc snatches overall Silk Way Rally lead
VOLGOGRAD (Russia): The Monster Energy X-raid Team was rewarded for its hard work by taking a stage win and the overall lead in the Silk Way Rally after the second special stage between Lipetsk and Volgograd on Monday.
The French duo of Stéphane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret clinched the stage victory in their Mini All4 Racing. The mechanics had worked all night on the car to resolve the technical problem that had slowed the Frenchman on Sunday’s opening stage.
Poland’s Krzysztof Holowczyc and his Belgian co-driver Jean-Mark Fortin finished second in their BMW X3 CC and claimed the overall rally lead, while the Russian pairing of Alexander Mironenko and Sergey Lebendev finished the special in an excellent fourth place in a second BMW X3 CC and hold third overall.
Peterhansel began the special in 11th position on the road and quickly caught several competitors. He was able to pass a Kamaz truck at a checkpoint and, in the dunes towards the end of the stage, he overtook Holowczyc and the two X-raid team drivers reached the finish together.
"If you start from 11th place, you have the motivation to pass all before you,” said Peterhansel. “It's like a game and it was fun. When we caught up with Krzysztof we stayed behind him in order not to take any unnecessary risks. The stage itself was a mixture of everything: fast passages, sandy stretches and small dunes. It was definitely not an easy day."
Holowczyc was classified in second position and this was the first time that he opened a stage into the dunes. "We were the ones who made the tracks. That was no easy task, but I think we have mastered it well, "said the delighted Pole at the finish. "The stage itself was long and demanding."
Mironenko and Lebendev were pleased with the fourth fastest time. "Today it was not always easy to find the right way, but we are satisfied," said Mironenko. "Once we had to stop and turn around on a sand dune, there were too many trees behind the dune crest."
"This was a great result for us, especially after yesterday's problems," said Monster Energy X-raid team boss Sven Quandt. "It's clear that Stéphane is now pushing. Krzysztof has to drive safe and without risks and then he has a very good chance of winning. Alexander has made a very good job."
The third stage on Tuesday (July 12th) takes crews from Volgograd to Astrakhan. After a liaison section of 148km, the special runs for 432km and finished 10km from the bivouac. The first 240km run through the Russian steppes, where navigation will be tricky on the deceptive tracks. Sand dunes will also be on the agenda again.
Silk Way Rally – 2nd Stage (@ 16.15hrs):
1. Stéphane Peterhansel (FRA)/Jean-Paul Cottret (FRA) MINI All4 Racing 5h 32m 46s
2. Krzysztof Holowczyc (POL)/Jean-Marc Fortin (BEL) BMW X3 CC 5h 46m 55s
3. Christian Lavielle (FRA)/Jean Michel Polato (FRA) Nissan 6h 22m 46s
4. Alexander Mironenko (RUS)/Sergey Lebedev (RUS) BMW X3 CC 6h 28m 20s
Silk Way Rally – Overall standings after SS2 (@ 16.15hrs):
1. Krzysztof Holowczyc (POL)/Jean-Marc Fortin (BEL) BMW X3 CC 9h 11m 21s
2. Christian Lavielle (FRA)/Jean Michel Polato (FRA) Nissan 10h 04m 44s
3. Alexander Mironenko (RUS) / Sergey Lebedev (RUS) BMW X3 CC 10h 07m 27s
…
10. Stéphane Peterhansel (FRA)/Jean-Paul Cottret (FRA) MINI All4 Racing 11h 18m 52s
Ends
Further information and photos are available at www.x-raid.de or contact Stefanie Szlapka or Thomas Quandt at X-raid GmbH, Tel: + 49 (0) 6147 204 670, E-mail: s.szlapka@x-raid.de or t.quandt@x-raid.de.