Paulo Goncalves finishes the Sertoes in second place after winning a new stage victory

Paulo Goncalves and Team HRC put in yet another fine performance, in this, the fifth race of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship held in Brazil. The Rally dos Sertoes ended with a victory for the Honda CRF450 RALLY rider, who has won five of the eight specials disputed.

It was good work all round in the Brazilian Rally dos Sertoes from Team HRC, as Paulo Goncalves – last year’s winner- took second place, in a competition in which he waged a constant daily battle for each stage, always making life difficult for the eventual winner.

The seventh and final stage of the Rally dos Sertoes was held between Diamantina and Belo Horizonte, with an initial link of just over 54 kilometres. The route of the 125 kilometre special took in rutted tracks, several river crossings, and a fair share of pot-holes. There was even a bit of trial as the route zigzagged its way up a hillside, before straightening out into faster stretches. The arrival in Belo Horizonte, the capital of the Minas Gerais region brings the twentieth edition of the Rally dos Sertoes to a close.

Paulo ‘Speedy’ Goncalves began the final day in search of victory, perhaps recalling last year’s editon in which he took the title. The rider set a cracking pace and once again, won the special, his fifth win in this Sertoes (four stages and the prologue), proving that both he, and the Honda CRF450 RALLY, are once again, highly competitive.

Team HRC team-mate Helder Rodrigues finished in a respectable fourth place, after local boy Jean Azevedo, from Honda Brazil, had spent a week demonstrating his competitiveness and succeeded in pipping his Honda rival to the third podium place.

Next event for Team HRC will be the Rally OiLibya Maroc, held in Morocco from 3rd to 9th October.