Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles
2023 Desafio Ruta 40: Ferioli, Sallum win Open classes
While the World Rally-Raid Championship made up the bulk of the headlines at the Desafío Ruta 40, the Open classes for competitors not under FIA or FIM sanction were also filled with stories of their own.
In fact, Open racers arguably stole the show from the Prologue when the T3 of Alfredo Olmedo spun off course and rolled down a cliff. Miraculously, Olmedo and his car were able to continue the rally and even finished on the podium in Stage #3 before retiring for good the next day.
Otherwise, another T3 swept the stages as Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli set the fastest time of all three Open Auto classes, beating his classmate Rodrigo Caballero by over an hour. Although competing in a non-FIA class, Ferioli already has experience in sanctioned competition as a longtime Dakar Rally quad rider and SSV racer, including winning a T4 stage in the 2023 edition.
Juan José Semino held off defending South American Rally Race T3.2 winner Diego Blas for the T4 win. With no prior Dakar experience, the victory earned him free registration for the 2024 Dakar Rally via the Road to Dakar programme.
In the Open Moto class, Joaquín Debeljuh proved to be the top rider on his RVM Rally, a rebadged Kove bike; Kove, which successfully completed the Dakar Rally and Sonora Rally earlier in the W2RC season, has a partnership with RVM to operate in Argentina. However, his race came undone when he crashed on the final stage and dislocated his shoulder.
His exit opened the door for Marcio Yampa and Rodrigo de Abreu Sallum, the latter holding off the 2021 Campeonato Argentino de Rally y Navegación and SARR champion for the overall win by just three minutes. Blas Zapag Peralta, a former rallycross driver, joined them on the podium; his father Blas Zapag Sr. won the Open Auto category.
The family affair also extended to the Rostans as Santiago Rostan won the Open Quad class and son Juan Santiago Rostan won the Road to Dakar for bikes in Rally2.
One of the more unique entries was Juan Nimo, who is paralysed from the waist down due to a motocross accident but has continued his career with a special Honda Tornado with a frame to support him. He officially retired from the race after arriving too late on the penultimate stage due to a broken clutch, but still completed the final leg and was celebrated as such.
Open overall results
Auto
| Finish | Class Finish | Number | Driver | Co-Driver | Team | Category | Time | Margin |
| 1 | 1 | 670 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | Gonzalo Rinaldo | Ferioli Racing Team | T3 | 17:34;31 | Leader |
| 2 | 2 | 674 | Rodrigo Caballero | Nicolas Bollero | Rodrigo Caballero | T3 | 18:40:43 | + 1:06:12 |
| 3 | 3 | 677 | Antonio Pennesi | Martin Wintersteter | ATV Sport Rally | T3 | 20:27:00 | + 2:52:29 |
| 4 | 1 | 678 | Juan José Semino | Gonzalo Oltra | Xcorpion Rally Racing | T4 | 20:59:00 | + 3:24:29 |
| 5 | 1 | 650 | Blas Zapag | Juan Jose Sanchez | Copetrol Rally | Cars | 23:06:34 | + 5:32:03 |
| 6 | 2 | 675 | Diego Blas | Victor Patricio | GM Motorsport | T4 | 23:40:55 | + 6:06:24 |
| 7 | 4 | 672 | Pablo Macua | Antonela Fazzi | Macua Sport Team | T3 | 35:12:19 | + 17:37:48 |
| 8 | 2 | 651 | Ramon Nuñez | Juan Antonio Cosiansi | Salta Rally Team | Cars | 50:32:15 | + 32:57:44 |
| 9 | 3 | 676 | Javier Velez | Fernando Imperatrice | GM Motorsport | T4 | 50:44:2 | + 33:09:49 |
| 10 | 5 | 673 | Ruben Gentile | Yessica Gentile | HV Racing | T3 | 58:17:37 | + 40:43:06 |
| DNF | DNF | 652 | Sergio Larreguy | Nestor Norha | Etap Racing | Cars | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 671 | Alfredo Olmedo | Daniel Lopez | Can-Am Racing Team | T3 | DNF | N/A |
Moto
| Finish | Class Finish | Number | Rider | Team | Category | Time | Margin |
| 1 | 1 | 605 | Rodrigo de Abreu Sallum | MED Racing Team | Moto | 22:36:24 | Leader |
| 2 | 2 | 608 | Marcio Yampa | MEB Belén Rally | Moto | 22:39:32 | + 3:08 |
| 3 | 3 | 606 | Blas Zapag Peralta | MED Racing Team | Moto | 24:11:10 | + 1:34:46 |
| 4 | 1 | 623 | Santiago Rostan | Pampa Rental Rally Team | Quad | 25:28:33 | + 2:52:09 |
| 5 | 2 | 621 | Matías Innocente | Corrientes Dakar Team | Quad | 46:23:26 | + 23:47:02 |
| 6 | 4 | 603 | Matías Aranoa | Enfermos por el Dakar Rally Team | Moto | 53:14:56 | + 30:38:32 |
| DNF | DNF | 600 | Joaquín Debeljuh | RVM Rally Team | Moto | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 602 | Martín Franco | MED Racing Team | Moto | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 604 | Agustin Pedersen | Revo | Moto | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 607 | Juan Nimo | Particular Revo | Moto | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 609 | Agustin Donovan | Donovan Racing Team | Moto | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 610 | Eduardo Parra | Revo | Moto | DNF | N/A |
| DNF | DNF | 611 | Juan Cruz Carrizo | JC Electricidad SA | Moto | DNF | N/A |
Open stage winners
Auto
| Stage | Auto | Time | T3 | Time | T4 | Time |
| Prologue | Blas Zapag | 7:57 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | 7:19 | Juan José Semino | 8:34 |
| Stage #1 | Blas Zapag | 3:38:37 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | 3:26:29 | Diego Blas | 3:55:44 |
| Stage #2 | Blas Zapag | 5:20:03 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | 4:25:00 | Juan José Semino | 4:34:40 |
| Stage #3 | Blas Zapag | 4:44:48 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | 3:23:21 | Juan José Semino | 4:08:13 |
| Stage #4 | Blas Zapag | 6:15:15 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | 3:25:02 | Juan José Semino | 4:38:49 |
| Stage #5 | Blas Zapag | 3:07:51 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli | 2:54:39 | Juan José Semino | 3:32:14 |
Moto
| Stage | Moto | Time | Quad | Time |
| Prologue | Blas Zapag Peralta | 1:05:52 | Santiago Rostan | 1:14:16 |
| Stage #1 | Joaquín Debeljuh | 3:29:29 | Santiago Rostan | 5:03:20 |
| Stage #2 | Joaquín Debeljuh | 4:45:21 | Santiago Rostan | 5:23:09 |
| Stage #3 | Marcio Yampa | 4:11:01 | Santiago Rostan | 4:49:03 |
| Stage #4 | Joaquín Debeljuh | 4:14:56 | Santiago Rostan | 4:56:07 |
| Stage #5 | Rodrigo de Abreu Sallum | 3:14:56 | Matías Innocente | 3:45:48 |
Overall winners
| Class | Number | Competitor | Team | Time |
| T1 | 200 | Nasser Al-Attiyah | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 15:10:03 |
| T3 | 302 | Mitch Guthrie | Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team | 16:22:31 |
| T4 | 403 | Gustavo Gallego* | South Racing Can-Am | 18:34:37 |
| RallyGP | 68 | Tosha Schareina* | Honda Team | 15:58:46 |
| Rally2 | 21 | Bradley Cox | BAS World KTM Racing Team | 17:01:01 |
| Rally3 | 122 | Ardit Kurtaj | Xraids Experience | 23:15:45 |
| Quad | 152 | Manuel Andújar | 7240 Team | 19:24:30 |
| Open Auto | 650 | Blas Zapag* | Copetrol Rally | 23:06:34 |
| Open T3 | 670 | Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli* | Ferioli Racing Team | 17:34:31 |
| Open T4 | 678 | Juan José Semino* | Xcorpion Rally Racing | 20:59:00 |
| Open Moto | 608 | Rodrigo de Abreu Sallum* | MED Racing Team | 22:36:24 |
| Open Quad | 623 | Santiago Rostan* | Pampa Rental Rally Team | 25:28:33 |
| Road to Dakar Auto | 678 | Juan José Semino* | Xcorpion Rally Racing | 20:59:00 |
| Road to Dakar Moto | 69 | Juan Santiago Rostan* | Pampa Rental Rally Team | 25:28:33 |
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