RUST magazine: RUST #44

Chris Evans
Yamaha: once again there’s been a
change of management with ex-French
enduro rider Marc Bourgeois now running
the show. Undoubtedly competent, he has
never competed in rally-raid and has little
managerial experience in the discipline.
Their riders are all good but only Adrien
Van Beveren has ever looked like a
potential winner and since his crash while
leading the Dakar two years ago he has
struggled to return to form.
Honda: with Joan Barreda, Kevin
Benavides and Ricky Brabec they have
three potential winners but something
always seems to go wrong. Brabec
blew his engine while leading last year
and they have a tendency to pick up
unnecessary penalties. There was the
time a couple of years ago when they
all went off to refuel in the middle of
a special which, despite what many
said at the time, was, I think, a genuine
mistake, but they picked up another
three hours this year on the Silk Way
rally when it was obvious they were
going to get caught out. The problem
is that now everybody is looking at
them very closely…
Sherco: Johnny Aubert is no spring
chicken but the French manufacturer’s
new signing went well in October’s
Rally du Maroc. Both he and Mika
Metge could win a stage but the
team has nowhere near the budget
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