COMA CROWNED, BRABEC FIFTH
D
ue to severe sandstorms
that wreaked havoc last
week throughout the Middle
East, the final stage of the Abu
Dhabi Desert Challenge, round
one of the 2015 FIM Cross
Country Rallies World Cham-
pionship, was canceled. With
overall results reverting back
to the fourth stage, Red Bull
KTM's Marc Coma was crowned
the winner. American rider Ricky
Brabec carded fifth overall, and
was credited with the Junior divi-
sion win.
At the close of the fourth
stage, Coma led the field by
nearly 12 minutes. He emerged
victorious ahead of his Red Bull
KTM Factory teammate Sam
Sunderland and KTM Warsaw
Rally Team's Pablo Quintanilla
who finished second and third,
respectively. The win marked
Coma's eighth in the Abu Dhabi
Desert Challenge.
"Today they had to suspend
the stage because of the
weather," Coma explained.
"This meant that we returned
to Abu Dhabi on the road. The
truth is that the conditions were
bad. I am happy and proud to
have achieved this eighth victory
in the Abu Dhabi Desert Chal-
lenge. It was very important to
continue in this way, especially
after the win in the Dakar. We
have picked up a lot of points
for the championship and now
it's time to rest and think about
the next round in Qatar."
Although the rally was short-
ened by one day, it was still a
very tough race. Riders faced
temperatures of up to 113
degrees in the dunes, which of-
fered very few navigational cues
to racers. The sandstorm on day
five reduced visibility enough to
where the support helicopters
IN
THE
WIND
P30
Mark Coma won
his eighth Abu
Dhabi Challenge.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
RALLY
ZONE
BAUER/BARNI
