· Vasilyev wins the desert rally in superior style.
X-raid congratulates Vladimir Vasilyev and Konstantin Zhiltsov on their win in the ninth Africa Eco Race from Monaco to Dakar. With their MINI ALL4 Racing, the two Russians won the rally with a lead of more than two hours over Miroslav Zapletal in second position. In his debut appearance in the Africa Eco Race, Vasilyev won a total of four of the 12 stages.
Particularly in the first week, Vasilyev and Zhiltsov opened a huge gap on their competitors by dominating and winning the first three special stages. Later, they succeeded in adding another stage win in Mauritania to their tally. Also helpful: the Russian pairing and their MINI ALL4 Racing contested the rally without encountering any technical problems.
The Africa Eco Race started on the 31st December in Monaco. New Year’s Day was used for ferrying the field to Morocco. From Nador, the event took the field across Morocco and Mauritania to Senegal and its capital Dakar. There, the participants contested the final stage on 14th January at the well-known Lac Rose.
“We are really happy about the fact that a MINI ALL4 Racing built by us succeeded in winning the Africa Eco Race that is following the original tracks of the Dakar Rally,” said Sven Quandt, team manager and founder of the X-raid team. “We congratulate Vladimir and Konstantin on their great performance. They drove a clever rally what allowed them to obtain such a big lead over the rest of the field.”
Overall ranking with all the 12 stages contested:
1st V. Vasilyev (RUS) / K. Zhiltsov (RUS) MINI ALL4 Racing – 36h 33m 40s
2nd M. Zapletal (CSZ) / M. Sykora (CSZ) Hummer – 38h 44m 10s
3rd D. Housieaux (FRA) / C. Crespo (FRA) Optimus – 38h 52m 37s
