At the finish line of his seventh World Cup season, Rafa\u0142 Sonik did not hide his huge satisfaction, yet he did experience a small dose of dissatisfaction. Without any doubt, this year was the most difficult one in the career of the Krak\u00f3w-based competitor, who faced injuries, equipment failures, and a bad turn of fate.<\/p>\n
During Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, ever since the beginning of the race the World Cup defender had to make up for the time he had lost because of the poor quality gas, which clogged up the filters. When he finally took the lead, the engine died on him and exploded on route, spitting out the entire oil. Kamil Wi\u015bniewski towed Sonik up to the finish line. The ninth place in the challenge meant that fighting for another World Cup title became extremely difficult just as it began.<\/p>\n
In the well-known Qatar Rally, Rafa\u0142 Sonik was one of the major favourites. No other rival has ever raced before in such a complicated labyrinth of paths. What\u2019s more, the Krak\u00f3w-based rider won this round three times already \u2013 and he added the fourth win in 2017 to the list. That win was hard won \u2013 he broke an axle during one of the stages and he made it to the finish line miraculously, having repaired his quad with zip ties, but his rivals didn\u2019t avoid making mistakes and despite these problems, they didn\u2019t manage to catch up with the Polish rider.<\/p>\n
The Rally de Sardegna was to be a test ride, because Rafa\u0142 Sonik\u2019s favourite round did not make it to the FIM World Cup calendar this year. The start ended up with an accident during the last stage and a knee injury, which affected him significantly during the next two rallies. During the Atacama Rally in Chile, the \u201cSuperSonik\u201d not only had to face the pain, but he also had to deal with an unlucky failure of the navigation system. The distance meter showed the position on route incorrectly, which was why he was speeding in the speed limit zone. The time penalty killed any changes he had to fight for the podium, but two weeks later, in Argentina, he arrived at the finish lime among the top three riders with Dakar Rally experience.<\/p>\n
The Morocco Rally was, traditionally, the last strong note of the season. As the three-times winner of this race, Rafa\u0142 Sonik joined the ranks of the OiLibya Rally legends, who were distinguished on the occasion of celebrating the 10th edition of the rally. While in race, he fought for each and every minute; initially, he left Kees Koolen far behind, but ultimately it was the Dutch rider who won the race and was the one to take the World Cup. Rafa\u0142 Sonik added two new silver medals to his medal collection \u2013 the first one for the Quads\u2019 World Cup and Veterans\u2019 World Cup.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Atacama Rally<\/strong><\/p>\n Rafa\u0142 Sonik came to Atacama Rally as last year\u2019s winner, knowing full well that it would not be easy to repeat the success. The line-up of the race included several experienced local competitors, including the grand rival \u2013 Ignacio Casale. <\/strong><\/p>\n Even though the local media focused mainly on the Casale-Sonik duel, the Polish quad rider dedicated a lot more attention to competing with his rivals in the fight for the World Cup. Both Kees Koolen and Alexis Hernandez were hot on his heels in the general classification, so the defender of the trophy wanted to all that it was in his power to keep them at a distance.<\/p>\n The knee injury that the quad rider suffered on Sardegna was clearly a hindrance in his plan. Pain became his daily companion, but despite that, he stayed close to his most dangerous rivals. Unfortunately, the failure of the navigation system prevented the Krak\u00f3w-based rider from meeting his minimum goal \u2013 the podium in Chile. The distance meter showed an incorrect position on route. As a result, the six-times winner of the World Cup entered the speed limit zone faster than he should have. The time penalty pushed him outside the top three riders.<\/p>\n \u2018There is frustration and dissatisfaction, because a small detailed made me drop to the second place in the general classification. I\u2019m aware that this could\u2019ve cost me much, much more. Had I faced a dangerous obstacle without being aware how close it is, the consequences would be much more severe than just losing a place on the podium,\u2019 added Sonik.<\/p>\n After the Atacama Rally, Rafa\u0142 Sonik went down to the second position in the World Cup classification, and the lead was taken by Kees Koolen (the Netherlands).<\/p>\n Desafio Ruta 40<\/strong><\/p>\n Argentina returned to the FIM World Cup calendar after an absence of several years. The starting line-up contained over 30 quad riders, and a significant number of them were experienced Dakar Rally riders. In this truly challenging event, Rafa\u0142 Sonik came up third, keeping the mathematical chances for defending the trophy that belonged to him over the past four years.<\/strong><\/p>\n At the start of Desafio Ruta 40, \u201cSuperSonik\u201d had extra support. During the prologue and at the starting ramp, he was accompanied by the Polish Ambassador to Argentina, Mr Marek Pernal. \u2018We met earlier in Buenos Aires. It was a true honour for me to unfurl the white&red flag at the starting ramp together with him,\u2019 said Sonik, who met with the Ambassador again shortly after the race. The meeting was held on the occasion of the exhibition entitled \u201cPoland and Polish people versus independent Argentina 1816-2016\u201d, which opened on 1 September in the rooms of the Senate of the Republic of Argentina.<\/p>\n For five days, the riders competed on rocky, mountainous paths. Clouds of dust, labyrinths of ravines, dry riverbeds and crossing the streams flowing down the snowy peaks. With difficult navigation, technically challenging terrain, and many places dangerous enough so that they were accompanied by three exclamation marks in the roadbook to boot.<\/p>\n In these difficult conditions, the Polish rider felt great and he initially took the lead. Unfortunately, a bad jump caused a bone to break in SuperSonik\u2019s ankle, and the next three days he was driving injured. Despite the injury, he climbed up to the podium, giving way only to Pablo Copetti and Kees Koolen. His position in the World Cup remained the same.<\/p>\n OiLibya Rally <\/strong><\/p>\n The last and deciding round of the FIM World Cup was \u2013 traditionally \u2013 held on Sahara. This time, the win in the OilLibya Rally went to Kees Koolen, who secured not only the main trophy for himself, but also the Veterans\u2019 World Cup. Rafa\u0142 Sonik supplemented his collection by two silver medals. <\/strong><\/p>\n This year\u2019s anniversary tenth edition of OiLibya Rally in Morocco began by honouring the \u201clegends\u201d of this prestigious rally, whose origins coincided with the move of the Dakar Rally to South America. \u2018I think this is partially why this rally is called the \u201cSmall Dakar\u201d. Ever since the Rally of Egypt is no longer in the racing calendar, this rally is one of the few opportunities to race in the Sahara desert,\u2019 said Sonik, who was one of the awarded riders.<\/p>\n He took his place on the stage next to outstanding riders from all classes. The organizers appreciated e.g. Nasser Al-Attiyah, Carlos Sainz, Pablo Goncalves, Sam Sunderland, Bruno da Costa, or Elisabete Jacinto. The \u201cSuperSonik\u201d nickname, which is what Sonik\u2019s fans call him, is clearly supported by the statistics: out of four times he participated in this rally, he won three times and was second once.<\/p>\n After five days of fierce fight, Sonik couldn\u2019t catch up with his Dutch competitor. \u2018Kees Koolen drives a phenomenal quad that was developed by him and his team for the past several years. This season proved that even though his quad has better parameters and can do more, I\u2019m still able to compete with him. I just need to be sound in body. Unfortunately, I had to deal with a knee injury in South America, and later with a broken bone in my ankle. These injuries foiled my plans, but I\u2019m still satisfied that I didn’t give in to the pain. There is no other thing that brings such joy than the moment when we again and again beat our limits,\u2019 he summarized.<\/p>\n \u2018The time has now come to celebrate,\u2019 added Sonik, who won the World Cup trophy six times already. \u2018I\u2019d love to enjoy the first place and another \u2018gold\u2019 trophy in my collection, but standing on the podium after such a difficult, exhausting and painful season is enough of an award. Now it’s time to take some rest. In two weeks, we\u2019ll start getting ready for the Dakar Rally. This will be my tenth time there and the anniversary, 40th edition of the marathon. There can’t be a better time to fight for a Bedouin, can it?\u2019 concluded \u201cSuperSonik\u201d, who now has six gold and two silver medals in his collection.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At the finish line of his seventh World Cup season, Rafa\u0142 Sonik did not hide his huge satisfaction, yet he did experience a small dose of dissatisfaction. Without any doubt, this year was the most difficult one in the career of the Krak\u00f3w-based competitor, who faced injuries, equipment failures, and a bad turn of fate. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":2893,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n