Despite a crash on the first day and gearbox problems, Alfie Cox recovered to finish fifth in the Rally of Tunisia on Monday.
Despite a crash on the first day and gearbox problems, Alfie Cox recovered to finish fifth in the Rally of Tunisia on Monday.
After completing the seventh and final 282-km special stage of the North African event, the South African KTM rider was classified fifth overall in the motorcycle category. The rally was the first event in the 2004 Cross Country World Cup Series.
“I would have preferred a podium finish, but I am satisfied with what I achieved. It’s been two years since I last competed in the Rally of Tunisia. Last year, I could not compete in the World Cup as a result of my accident in the Dakar. Some of the navigation was unique to this race and I have yet again learnt a lot. I hope to do most of the World Cup events this year and be very well prepared for the 2005 Dakar,” the South African said.
Coxed completed the event without the services of a technician and carried out repair work himself. “On the first two days (of the rally) it was rough. I crashed and had to repair the handlebars and a few odds and ends. On the second day I had to replace a lot of the gearbox’s components. I don’t think it is ideal for anyone to compete and do the technical stuff, but not everyone can do that in a race and still finish in the top five,” he added.
Defending Cross Country World Cup champion Cyril Despres took overall honours in the motorcycle category ahead of Spain’s Marc Coma and Richard Sainct. Another Spaniard, Esedré Esteve Pujol, finished ahead of South Africa’s Cox.
In the car category, Mitsubishi drivers finished first, second and third. Overall honours went to Stephane Peterhansel and co-driver Jean Louis Cottret.