IN
THE
WIND
P40
T
he OiLibya Morocco Rally, the
final round of the FIM Cross-
Country Rallies World Champi-
onship, is underway and almost
complete, having run four of its
five stages through the deserts
of North Africa. With one stage
remaining, Pablo Quintanilla sits
at the top of the standings with
a near seven-minute advantage.
The Morocco Rally also marks
the first world championship rally
for Andrew Short, the supercross
specialist-turned-rally racer.
Short, aboard a Factory Rockstar
Energy Husqvarna adorned with
his signature number 29, joins
Monster Energy Honda Team
rider Ricky Brabec as the Ameri-
can contingent in Morocco.
The rally opened with its lon-
gest stage, and after a 12-hour
day in the saddle, Pablo Quin-
tanilla of Chile stood atop the
standings. The Rockstar Energy
Husqvarna rider battled through
the dust to lead the way ahead
of the Factory Red Bull KTM duo
of Matthias Walkner and Sam
Sunderland. But day two proved
to be a complete shake up of
the initial standings when heavy
rains and quickly rising water
levels provided a bit of drama.
"There was a deep river that
wasn't marked in the road book,"
explained Quintanilla, who was
the first to come across the
muddy torrent. "I got stuck in the
BRABEC, SHORT TAKE ON MOROCCO RALLY
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
HUSQVARNA-MOTORCYCLES
Pablo Quintanilla leads
the way in the Morocco
Rally, and is one step
away from clinching
the 2017 FIM Cross-
Country Rallies World
Championship.