The competition tightens
OULAD DRISS - OULAD DRISS
Leg 5
The day after the marathon leg, the gap is closing on the podium of the 4×4 Class general ranking. Régine and Tania of Team 216 (Tania LIO / Régine ZBINDEN)win the leg with 4.99 km over the ideal distance, 1.24 km ahead of Jeanette and Rachelle of Team 267 (Jeanette JAMES / Rachelle GRESLE). Jamila and Dounia of Team 147 (Jamila FRUCHART / Dounia BENNANI)put in a good performance and finish the leg in third place. The podium positions remain unchanged with Jeanette and Rachelle in second place, followed by Sophie and Julie of Team 143 (Julie KOHLMANN / Sophie FABRI). Tomorrow’s marathon leg could hold some surprises as just 3.04 km separate the two top teams.
In 4×4 First Participation, novices Cendrine and Pauline of Team 223 (Cendrine AZZOPARDI / Pauline CHAPPAZ)hold onto the top spot in the general ranking after Leg 5, despite not finishing in the top 10 of the leg. The leg is won by Christelle and Britt of Team 226 (Christelle GESLOT / Britt ARNAUD)with 9.69 km over the ideal distance, followed by Amandine and Delphine of Team 254 (Amandine MESQUIDA / Delphine GIMENEZ-FAIXA)with 9.78 km. Christelle and Britt’s performance allows them to climb into 2nd position in the general ranking with a total penalty score of 233.68 km.
The competition is tight in SSV/Quad Class, where less than 2 km separate the top five teams in the day’s ranking. Unsurprisingly, Betty and Sonia of Team 39 (Betty KRAFT / Sonia BAUDOIN-GUERARD)finish in top spot with 4.26 km over the ideal distance. Véronique and Laurence of Team 44 (Véronique DE SYBOURG-SIFFERT / Laurence BRASEY)are back in the race with 5.21 km, just 400 metres ahead of Team 25 (Fanny MARCHESI / Laurence LINDOR). The general ranking remains the same as after the marathon leg, with Teams 47 (Delphine BICHOFFE / France CLEVES)and 21 (Catherine KERAMIDAS / Hélène LEMAITRE)holding onto second and third place respectively.
In Crossover Class, Hajar and Malika of Team 306 (Hajar EL BIED / Malika AJAHA)continue to dominate the general ranking after a Leg 5 win, where they finish just 170 metres ahead of Team 300 (Aurélie NADEAU / Sarah FESSEAU). Valérie and Emmanuelle of Team 304 (Valérie SANTINI / Emmanuelle GIRAUD-BUSSAT)finish third in the leg, holding on to second spot in the general ranking. They are trailed by Adeline and Karima of Team 308 (Adeline DROUIN / Karima BENOUARET BENZID), who will have a hard time catching up to the top two teams.
In E-Gazelle Class, Aïcha and Kitty of Team 512 (Aïcha SOSTARIC / Kitty DUQUESNE)finish first in the leg with 10.25 km over the ideal distance. Unfortunately, this is not enough to get on the podium of the general ranking, which is still dominated by Manal and Karolyn of Team 500 (Manal FAXELLE-ABOUHAMDA / Karolyn FAVREAU), who will be hard to beat as they are the only team that has had no mechanical assistance since the beginning of the rally. Lucie and Céline of Team 506 (Lucie PAPUT / Céline MICHOUX)put in a noteworthy performance, finishing the leg just behind the top team. Among the electric buggies, Armelle and Yolande are back in the race and finish Leg 5 in first place with just 6.06 km over the ideal distance. Impossible however for the Gazelles to climb in the general ranking. They remain in third place, far behind the second team because of their call for mechanical assistance on the marathon leg. Agnès and Marie of Team 600 (Marie BELINGARD / Agnès MOSSINA)remain at the top of the podium.
