Julien Toniutti on track for a national title

 

As early as the day after the rally of Morvan (close to Bourgogne region), Julien Toniutti emerged leading the French Road Rally Championship. The KTM rider, who receives technical support from Motul, confirmed his position at the Rally of Dourdou (south of France) on 13/14th July, despite a tough course which, unusually, started with a night event. Despite excellent times in the first two timed stages, a Vector tracking problem (electronic location device) heavily penalised the rider from Lyon. "It was raining a lot and the on-board electronics really suffered," he explained. "My broken tracker prevented me from updating my road book, which made me lose time. I checked in late which earned me penalties.” He therefore found himself 14th in the night-time rankings.

The next day Julien Toniutti left again with the bit between his teeth, determined to win. He achieved that brilliantly, leaving little opportunity for his opponents to challenge: "My ranking from the day before really upset me, I wanted to make a big push," he explained after the race. "In the end I won, but it's more because of consistency as I won two of the six stages. I was 2nd in the overall Scratch but first place was downgraded because of penalties.”

Leading the championship, Julien Toniutti has a substantial lead as there is only one race left, on 15/16th September. "By putting in just a bit, I can win the title," Julian recalled. "I'm going to try not to think about it and ride without pressure!"

Standings Top Sport
01// Julien Toniutti – KTM 990 – 250 pts - Motul
02//  Bruno Langlois – Ducati 1100 – 202 pts
03//  Nicolas Pautet – KTM 990 – 162 pts

Photo credit: Lud Outdoor Photographie