Aprilia triumph with Cerutti: the victory of the Africa Eco Race arrives

A confirmed record, an important test of strength and a reaffirmed presence. Aprilia started 2024 on the right foot, triumphing in this edition of the Africa Eco Race. The off road race represented a challenge for the Noale company, which made its debut this year to triumph with Jacopo Cerutti, author of a historic feat. Incredible race also for Francesco Montanari, who achieved the eighth final position on his debut in the competition.

Over six thousand kilometers led the all-Italian duo to impose themselves on their opponents, an arduous route between sand, dunes, roads and beaten tracks. The 2024 edition of the Africa Eco Race was complicated, but Aprilia and Cerutti wrote history, also putting their signature in the African raid competitions. From Europe to Dakar, the road was long, but at the finish line the tricolor flew high.

The Aprilia Touareg is the result of the work of the Guareschi brothers, who designed and built it in Noale, making its debut in the edition that has just ended. Already last year this bike had won the Italian Motorally title and reached the podium in the Transanatolia rally in Turkey. These successes led to trying the challenge, which turned out to be successful, an arduous but very satisfying undertaking.

It seems that Aprilia is new to off road, in reality it had already brought out its off road soul in the 1970s with the Scarabeo, releasing a cross 125 as its first race bike in 1975 and winning already two years later. Noale then decided to focus on the track, where he made his debut in 1992, both in the world championship and in Superbike. Titles and races have enriched Aprilia's palmarès, which has never abandoned its off-road spirit.

1989 is the year of the first participation in the Dakar Rally, before leaving and returning in 2010 and for the following two years, finishing in third position on debut and winning in 2012. To date, Aprilia still remains the last Italian brand to have won a stage in the toughest raid in the world, in 2012.

Massimo Rivola, CEO of Aprilia Racing, states: “What Jacopo did, winning in Dakar, is unprecedented. It is a true, enormous sporting undertaking that celebrates a great champion, an exceptional Italian motorcycle, designed, developed and produced here in Noale and an incredible job done by Aprilia Racing and the Guareschis, to whom my special thanks go. Having led one of the most difficult races in the world from day one, in the face of very strong opponents, is an extraordinary sign of strength that went beyond all our expectations.”

Vittoriano Guareschi – Gcorse, declares: “Fantastic! Jacopo was exceptional throughout the race, always dictating the pace. The second stage was the key, with that gap in the standings which then allowed him to manage like a great champion. Also great Francesco who took the bike to Dakar on his debut and gained more than one satisfaction in the special stages. What the whole team did is incredible, it was our first experience against very strong opponents, like the Yamaha team, who have great experience, especially on the of desert in Mauritania.
The bike was perfect, never a problem, with this triumph the Tuareg project showed all its basic qualities: weight balance, suspension travel, engine character, quality of materials. The production bike is already a point of reference.”

Photo by: Aprilia Racing

Francesco Montanari, Aprilia RAcing, Africa Eco Race

Jacopo Cerutti is enthusiastic about the triumph: “It's all beautiful, for me it was an honor to be able to collaborate on the development of the bike with Aprilia Racing and GCorse. In a short time we have achieved incredible goals and honestly I didn't think we would be able to arrive so ready for this appointment. However, I knew that the standard Tuareg already provided us with an excellent starting point, then the rest was done by the great work done by the whole team in recent months. I certainly didn't expect to win, perhaps starting without the pressure of being the favorites was a good thing and we were also helped by a bit of luck, which never hurts, because in an African raid the unexpected is always around the corner and instead everything always went smoothly. A fantastic experience and emotion, now we can enjoy the celebrations.”

Francesco Montanari expresses his joy: “I am very happy to have arrived in Dakar and to have managed to improve stage after stage, managing to place in the top positions on several occasions. All this was possible because I was put in the ideal conditions to express my potential: the bike is fantastic to ride and the whole team did an exceptional job, both in preparing for the race and in these two weeks in Africa. I would therefore like to thank Aprilia for this opportunity and all the members of the GCorse team for their continued support. I am obviously also happy for Jacopo's beautiful victory, he was very good and deserves it. I hope that this can be a starting point for me, I want to continue to improve because I think I have shown that I can compete with the best.”