Double Dakar Rally champion Marc Coma makes a habit of winning top Enduro titles so it was no surprise to see him winning the 2010 Pharaons Rally in Egypt earlier this month.
With yet another FIM World Championship in his saddlebag, we take a look at Marc’s vital statistics from his triumph in the Sahara Desert...
4...
Four he’s a jolly good fellow seems to sum up Marc’s victory in the 2010 Pharaons Rally. This latest win was his fourth triumph in the Egyptian rally and it also brought him his fourth FIM World Championship. On his way to eating up the early lead Chaleco Lopez held over him, Marc won four of the Pharaons’ six stages. With victories this year in the UAE Desert Challenge, Sardinia Rally and Sertoes Rally, the win in the Sahara gave Marc his fourth title of 2010.
690...
Marc has taken his KTM 690 EXC around the world over the past decade and enjoyed far more good times than bad on his trusty steed. The Pharaons Rally saw the culmination of an emotional last season for Marc and his bike, with the 690cc category being removed from next year’s FIM World Championship. Knowing the Pharaons Rally was his last waltz on his bike, Marc knew what had to be done, “I simply had to win the title because this was the farewell rally with my current bike. Next year I will be back with a new and updated machine.”
8:23...
Marc found it tough being the first biker to leave the Great Pyramid of Giza at the start of the 2010 Pharaons Rally. The 450cc bike of Chaleco Lopez seemed better suited to the conditions and Marc eventually came home eight minutes behind the Chilean on stage one. Marc kept his focus over the next five stages and managed to chip away little by little at Chaleco’s lead before leaving him for dust on the last day. A deficit of eight minutes was turned into a lead of eight by the time Marc hit the shores of the Mediterranean Sea at the conclusion of the race.
9000...
After successfully navigating his way through 3,000km of desert on his way towards another Pharaons Rally win, Marc’s attention now turns to the 2011 Dakar Rally. In January the proud Catalan will be out to claim his third victory in the biggest race of them all. The Dakar is the ultimate test for an Enduro rider and, with 9,000km of trail, its three times the length of the Pharaons. In the last Dakar, Marc’s chances of success were shattered by a controversial six-hour time penalty. This time its personal!
34...
Marc celebrated his 34th birthday by winning the fourth stage of this year’s Pharaons Rally. The stage win was an important piece of the puzzle not just to win the Pharaons but also the FIM World Championship. Marc was pleased with the birthday present he had picked out for himself, “I always say that I choose good gifts for people and this one for myself is definitely another good one.” With 34 years on the clock, there is still plenty more the Catalan wants to achieve in Enduro competition. One landmark Marc has already reached is matching the four Pharaons titles won by his idol Fabrizio Meoni.
21:18.50...
After six days under the sun in the Sahara Desert, the Catalan’s overall winning time was recorded at 21h18m50s. With every victory Marc likes to give recognition to all the hard work which goes on behind the scenes and it was no different in Egypt, “victories give me and the team confidence that the work we are doing is benefiting the bike. The credit for the win goes to everyone in the team from the mechanics who travel with me to the people who work in the factory.”
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