2024 Desafio Ruta 40: Budassi, Alcorta, Palomba, Stratico navigate to Ansenuza wins

The Desafío Ansenuza is a navigation-based rally series that partners with the World Rally-Raid Championship whenever it arrives in Argentina for the Desafío Ruta 40. This continued for 2024 as twelve competitors across four categories took to the mountains.

2023 Ansenuza bike champion Ariel Budassi was the top dog on the two-wheel side, setting the fastest time for four of five stages and beating Nicolas Vaschetto by over six hours. Most of this margin was built in Stage #4, when Budassi finished within six hours while Vaschetto was second with a time of over nine and a half hours.

Prologue winner Juan Nimo finished third. A paraplegic rider who races with a special frame that keeps him upright while saddled, he had Eduardo Parra and Agustín Pedersen race alongside him as shadow riders; although Parra and Pedersen had their own numbers, the three are classified together as a single entity.

Three of the four Quad riders won a stage with Juan José Alcorta finishing ahead by an hour.

Nicolas Stratico, who won the 2024 Desafío Ansenuza’s season opener in Villa Mercedes in May, continued his hot streak in his new Toyota Hilux to win the Cars.

N5 champion Jonatan Palomba went back and forth with Omar Gandara for the UTV win. The closest battle came in Stage #4 when Gandara beat Palomba by just eleven seconds, but he finished half an hour behind in the overall.

Desafío Ansenuza overall results

Moto

Finish	Number	Rider	Team	Time	Margin
1	703	Ariel Budassi	Ariel Budassi	22:34:26	Leader
2	705	Nicolas Vaschetto	Nicolas Vaschetto	28:55:41	+ 6:21:15
3	700	Juan Nimo*	Juan Nimo	31:20:56	+ 8:46:30
4	706	Sebastián Reartes Neri	Sebastián Reartes Neri	34:25:43	+ 11:51:17

* – Eduardo Parra (#701) and Agustín Pedersen (#702) classified with Nimo

Quad

Finish	Number	Rider	Team	Time	Margin
1	721	Juan José Alcorta	Juan José Alcorta	22:07:09	Leader
2	724	Jorge Hernan Vazquez	Jorge Hernan Vazquez	23:45:03	+ 1:37:54
3	723	Victor Hugo Brusadin	Victor Hugo Brusadin	25:43:35	+ 3:36:26
4	720	Juan Pablo Díaz	Juan Pablo Díaz	36:49:02	+ 14:41:53

Auto

Finish	Number	Driver	Co-Driver	Team	Time	Margin
1	742	Nicolas Stratico	Fabián Aguzzi	Toyomec Sport Racing	23:43:04	Leader
2	743	Eduardo Mastantuono	Alejandro Schilling	Eduardo Mastantuono	31:17:05	+ 7:34:03

UTV

Finish	Number	Driver	Co-Driver	Team	Time	Margin
1	741	Jonatan Palomba	Daniel Annetta	Jonatan Palomba	18:29:13	Leader
2	740	Omar Gandara	Joaquín Wior	Omar Gandara	18:58:41	+ 29:28

Desafío Ansenuza stage winners

Moto/Quad

Stage	Bike	Time	Quad	Time
Prologue	Juan Nimo	14:05	Juan Pablo Díaz	14:09
Stage #1	Ariel Budassi	5:52:10	Juan José Alcorta	5:23:38
Stage #2	Ariel Budassi	3:41:16	Juan José Alcorta	3:26:00
Stage #3	Ariel Budassi	3:06:50	Victor Hugo Brusadin	4:16:13
Stage #4	Ariel Budassi	5:50:36	Victor Hugo Brusadin	3:57:46
Stage #5	Nicolas Vaschetto	4:00:41	Victor Hugo Brusadin	3:39:56

Auto/UTV

Stage	Auto	Time	UTV	Time
Prologue	Nicolas Stratico	14:13	Omar Gandara	14:03
Stage #1	Nicolas Stratico	5:59:13	Jonatan Palomba	5:21:48
Stage #2	Eduardo Mastantuono	3:50:17	Jonatan Palomba	3:12:22
Stage #3	Nicolas Stratico	3:59:10	Omar Gandara	3:30:06
Stage #4	Nicolas Stratico	5:58:42	Omar Gandara	3:04:36
Stage #5	Nicolas Stratico	3:54:14	Jonatan Palomba	3:06:44