The Salzburg KTM rider leads the field in Russia with a lead of two and a half minutes over the Argentine Franco Caimi. The pilots will have to cope with two special stages before the champion is chosen in the West Siberian city of Gorno-Altaisk.
The rally, which partly runs along the historic Silk Road and is part of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Cup, was supposed to lead from Russia to Mongolia and end in the capital there, but nothing will come of it now. According to the organizer, entry will be waived due to the corona situation in Mongolia. The rally entourage remains on Russian soil.
Walkner, who also managed a few river crossings on Sunday, was happy about an “unexpected” victory of the day and regretted the relocation of the route: “I would have been very happy to drive through Mongolia. We would have expected a lot of variety in the landscape and again longer stages. The fact that we are now driving the same route back in a shortened rally is really, really a shame.
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