The European team won the first edition of the FIM Intercontinental Games

The Intercontinental Games premiered in Jerez with a good show on the track, some unknowns, big differences in level and, in any case, a great opportunity for the young participating drivers. Among the Spaniards, after the loss of María Herrera, only Gonzalo Sánchez was present in the European team in the first edition where the team from the old continent won.

This is not the first national competition organized, but it has this format. Without considering off-road competitions such as the ISDE or the MX and Trial of Nations, we have to go back to the seventies, when the Transatlantic Trophy was held in Great Britain.

A competition between Americans and British, in which the best drivers from each continent took part: Kenny Roberts, Barry Sheene, Randy Mamola, Dave Aldana and Freddy Spencer, among others. But only the English and Americans participated with different mechanics. That is, it has nothing to do with this first single-brand edition (Yamaha) of the FIM Intercontinental Games.

In Jerez, with 24 drivers in each category, a total of 48 participants of 19 nationalities were recognized.. A format to be expanded in the future to include other specialties such as MX and that will be adjusted every two years in different situations.

A team event spanning six continents: Africa, North America, South America, Asia, Europe and Oceaniawith four pilots in each of two categories called: Supersport 300 and Supersport.

In each team of four drivers there is one woman, another member may have experience in international tests and the remaining two do not. A strange combination.

In the 300 class, we chose the only Spanish rider, Gonzalo Sánchez: SSP 300 champion in ESBK and winner of the Super Finale of the R3 bLU cRU Cup, from Yamaha.

They all competed on the same motorcycle, the Yamaha R-3, in the category of SSP 300 with more limitations of electronics and tires Dunlopand Yamaha R-7like in the women’s world cup, in the class of Super sportsDunlop is also included.

The score is established with 24 points for the winner, 23 for second place, 22 for third and so on until 10 points are awarded for fifteenth.

The fact of losing a rider due to a crash is certain, in a competition where the community weighs more, despite motorcycling as an individual sport.

Competition

Asia started to make a difference in the SSP 300 after Mahendra won the first race and Farres finished ninth, while the Europeans finished second with Alonso and Di Perso (fifth) finishing second, five points behind the Asians. .

After the first Supersport race, Asia is temporarily in the lead, ten points ahead of Europe and 29 points ahead of Oceania.

At the end of the third race of the day, the second of the SSP 300, where Santamaria won, from the Latin American team, with Sánchez second, Europe is temporarily first, with 18 points ahead of Asia.

The fourth and final race remained, that is, the second in the Supersport category, held with the Yamaha R-7.

After the start and three laps of the race, it rained, so the race had to be stopped.

Tire change, new ten-lap race with the track gradually drying up and victory for Elia Bartolini. With De la Vega’s ninth place and Folguer’s tenth place, Europe won the first edition of the Intercontinental Games with a 14-point lead over Asia.

Interacting, protagonists

After Friday and Saturday practice in the SSP 300, Spanish Gonzalo Sánchez (Europe) was the fastest, ahead of Archie McDonald and Cameron Swain, both from the Oceania team. McDonald has FIM Superstock experience and the reigning SSP 300 World Champion, Indonesian SSP 300 World Champion Mahendra, finished sixth.

In the top category, Dino Iozzo (Africa), a South African with an Italian father who lives in Barcelona and is struggling to advance his goal in Moto2, beat Humberto Maier Neto (Latin America) and Seller (Africa).

Elia Bartolini qualified in fourth position, in the end the protagonist of the victory in Europe, with experience in the SSP 300 World Cup and European Supersport, which ended this year the season, in addition to finishing third in FIM Superstock World Cup in Endurance.

career

In the first SSP 300 race, McDoland, Mahendra, Mononyane and Sánchez stood up after the start.

Midway through the race, seven laps out of a total of fourteen, Sánchez, Mononyane, Mahendra, Alonso, Di Perso and Toth stood up, but Mononyane was hit by the ride trough of

not completing two penalty laps (long laps), which will ultimately be a black flag for exclusion for not complying with your penalty…

Sánchez fell at the exit of turn 7 and, with two to go, Mahendra used his experience by pulling a few tenths away from the pack to take the lead, threatened by McDonald, Alonso and Di Perso.

In the final lap, with the group of seven separated by three seconds, Mahendra fought off attacks by Alonso and McDonald, who entered in that order.

The first woman was the Italian Josephine Bruno.

Super sports

The race was shortened by two laps due to the fall of the South African Seller.

A race in which the Brazilian Maier Neto, the South African Iozzo and the Italian Bartolini maintained a good fight, distancing themselves from the group by almost three seconds.

The Europeans’ options disappeared temporarily when Folguer fell alongside Gaorekwe in the first round.

Maier took the lead in second, to hold on and distance himself from Iozzo, Bartolini and Seller, and the rest were nearly two seconds behind.

Midway through the race, Maier, Iozzo and Bartolini were in a close fight and so finished after the red flag, ahead of Frenchman De la Vega, more than three seconds behind in third, with Jones more than four second behind.

This is the case, with two races left, one in each category, Asia is still leading the team classification, and it is very clear that the loss of a driver due to a crash will surely punish his team .

Second race

Chronologically, the second SSP 300 race was the third of the day.

A really exciting race, with a good fight between the world champion Mahedra (Asia), Santamaria (Latin America) and Sánchez, our only representative who wanted to finish on the podium after his fall in the first race which was punishing well in the European team. .

Mahedra beat Santamaria at the same finish line by a thousandth of a second.

But the world champion’s penalty for irresponsible driving when he hit Santamaria knocked him two positions back, so victory went to Manuel Santamaria, Sánchez second and Mahendra completed the podium.

Youth and lack of experience played with Paz (South America), who ignored the order given to him by the Race Directorate (sanction) and ended up with a black flag and exclusion.

So we come to the last and decisive race of this Intercontinental Games where Europe leads and 18 points ahead of Asia: the end of the races for all team members is rewarded.

Last race

The African Iozzo, Bartolini (Europe) and the Brazilian Maier took the lead and behind them formed a compact group of nine drivers.

Iozzo took the lead on the third lap, followed by Jones (Oceania) and Maier, when before the end of this third lap it started to rain in the second sector: red flag.

The tires were replaced on a track that would gradually dry out, as it stopped raining. Ten laps into the race, even if the track is dry, the wet Dunlop tires will last. Leading the way were Wongthananon and Kasma, both from the Asian team, and Iozzo. The Europeans were far away, Folger was up to tenth position midway through the race and Maier fell when he was second. Bartolini came from behind as the track turned dry, took the lead and at the same time put the Europeans ahead with four laps remaining.

In the long run, the winner Bartolini was undoubtedly the opponent, but also the performances of De la Vega and Folger, who entered the top ten, gave victory to the European team.

In the individual classification, Bartolini and Maheda took the overall victory. Among the women, Mallory Dobs won the Supersport and Italian Josephine Bruno won the SSP 300.