On Sunday the 6th stage of the Championship of Russia "Velikaya Step - Don" came to the end in Volgograd as well as Russian rally-raid racing season.
The final stage of the Volgograd race repeated one to one yesterday's SS2 of 146 kilometers long. In "menu" there were fast steppe roads. Unfortunately already at the 9th kilometer of SS3 due to technical problems Dmitry Sotnikov's crew stopped. The crew tried to eliminate independently malfunction, but, most likely yesterday's accident didn't pass without consequences - a technical withdraw, problems with the engine. The first in Trucks category is Anton Shibalov’s crew 303 (1:36:16). He also became as a result the winner of the race in T4 category. The second Sergey Kupriyanov's crew 302, passing time is 1:37:14. A deserved second place following the results of the race.
According to the total points scored in a season Anton Shibalov’s crew is the winner of the Championship of Russia on rally-raids in 2015.
Vladimir Chagin, the head of "KAMAZ-master" team
"The championship of Russia on rally-raids came to the end. I think that it was well organized. Volgograd stage put a good point. The hospitality of the audience and sincere support of the regional authorities pleased a lot. This season was a good experience to all the crews involved in the Championship, it will allow them to act more confidently in international competitions, which we expect in the next year - "Africa Race" rally, "Dakar" and "Silk Way Rally". I am very happy for Anton Shibalov's crew - deserved victory on the stage and in the season! Now he is two-time champion of Russia. It is very important that the younger generation follows the traditions laid down by the older generation of "KAMAZ-master" team.
Anton Shibalov, pilot
At the start of this race we had three strong crews. I do not know what helped me to win. Perhaps it was luck. We had no stops for technical reasons. Thanks a lot to mechanics for well-prepared cars.
Sergey Kupriyanov, pilot
Today we drove without mistakes, quickly and fulfilled all the tasks. Professional advice that the head of the team "KAMAZ-master" Vladimir Chagin gives us - drive at your own pace. And we try to adhere to such tactics. In general, we are pleased with the result during the season, as the most important for us is to show some growth at each stage, and we see it. Now we plan to pass well a marathon in Africa and continue to participate for "KAMAZ-master" team in the next season.
Alexander Kupriyanov, navigator
In terms of experience there are no bad races, any race gives the experience and growth. From each race we learn something new and try to correct mistakes. Today we repeatedly passed yesterday's section and took a fresh look at a familiar track. And this is the right job, because it gives the opportunity to see the causes of mistakes which were made. We will try to eliminate them in future races and, of course, improve the result!
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