2015 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship explained

The 2015 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship season was the 13th season of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship.^[1]

Austria's Matthias Walkner, riding a KTM, was the winner of the championship by 7 points ahead of Great Britain's Sam Sunderland, who also rode a KTM.^[2] Walkner won the season's fourth event, the Sardegna Rally Race, while Sunderland was the winner of the final event, the Rallye OiLibya du Maroc. Third place in the championship, 11 points further behind Sunderland, went to the best-placed Honda rider, Paulo Gonçalves. Defending champion Marc Coma finished fourth, after announcing his retirement^[3] midway through the season – he was the only rider to win more than one event, winning the first two events at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and the Sealine Cross-Country Rally. Two other riders won races in 2015; Pablo Quintanilla won his home event at the Atacama Rally, and Poland's Jakub Piątek won the Rallye des Pharaons.

Calendar

The calendar for the 2015 season featured six rallies.^[1] Some of the rallies were also part of FIA Cross Country Rally World Cup. The Atacama Rally replaced Rallye dos Sertões for the 2015 season.

Round	Dates	Rally name
1	27 March – 2 April	Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge
2	20–24 April	Sealine Cross-Country Rally
3	12–16 May	Rallye des Pharaons
4	6–11 June	Sardegna Rally Race
5	30 August – 5 September	Atacama Rally
6	3–9 October	Rallye OiLibya du Maroc

Results

Round	Rally name	Podium finishers
	Rank	Rider	Bike	Time
1	Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge^[4]	1	Marc Coma	KTM 450 Rally	14:49:05
2		Sam Sunderland	KTM 450 Rally	15:01:00
3		Pablo Quintanilla	KTM 450 Rally	15:09:21
2	Sealine Cross-Country Rally^[5]	1	Marc Coma	KTM 450 Rally	19:56:48
2		Joan Barreda	Honda CRF 450 Rally	20:01:28
3		Paulo Gonçalves	Honda CRF 450 Rally	20:03:21
3	Rallye des Pharaons^[6]	1	Jakub Piątek	KTM 450 Rally	17:44:59
2		Juan Carlos Salvatierra	KTM 450 Rally	17:48:18
3		Mohammed Balooshi	KTM 450 Rally	19:21:03
4	Sardegna Rally Race^[7]	1	Matthias Walkner	KTM 450 Rally	16:30:26
2		Armand Monleón	KTM 450 Rally	16:32:59
3		Hélder Rodrigues	Yamaha WR450F	16:35:32
5	Atacama Rally^[8]	1	Pablo Quintanilla	KTM 450 Rally	11:07:34
2		Matthias Walkner	KTM 450 Rally	11:10:23
3		Sam Sunderland	KTM 450 Rally	11:10:48
6	Rallye OiLibya du Maroc^[9]	1	Sam Sunderland	KTM 450 Rally	15:38:00
2		Matthias Walkner	KTM 450 Rally	15:38:34
3		Paulo Gonçalves	Honda CRF 450 Rally	16:07:08

Championship standings

Riders' championship

• Points for final positions were awarded as follows:

Position	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	11th	12th	13th	14th	15th+
Points	20	17	15	13	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1

Pos	Rider	ABU	QAT	PHA	SAR	CHL	MAR	Points
1	Matthias Walkner	31^4	7^12		1^28	2^23	2^23	90
2	Sam Sunderland	2^23	6^13			3^19	1^28	83
3	Paulo Gonçalves	30^4	3^19		4^16	5^14	3^19	72
4	Marc Coma	1^28	1^28		5^14			70
5	Pablo Quintanilla	3^19	5^14		17^4	1^28	Ret^3	68
6	Mohammed Al Balooshi	6^13	10^9	3^19		8^11	Ret^3	55
7	Jakub Piątek	34^4	9^10	1^28	59^4		12^8	54
8	Jordi Viladoms		4^16		7^12	4^16	Ret^3	47
9	Rubén Faria	4^16	Ret^3		8^11		5^14	44
10	Armand Monleón	38^3	8^11		2^23			37

• A total of 152 riders scored championship points.^[10]

Notes and References

1. Web site: FIM Cross Country Rallies Commission: 2015 Provisional Calendars, 2 December. OiLibya Rally. NPO Events. 2 December 2014. 6 April 2015. 2 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402175359/http://webdocs.npo.fr/RALLYEMAROC/FIMCrossCountryRallyCommission-2015Calendars-2December.pdf. dead.
2. News: Watch Al-Attiyah drive to World Cup win in Morocco. 9 October 2015. 27 October 2015. Tim. Sturtridge. RedBull.com. Red Bull GmbH. There was also another impressive ride for Austrian motocross star turned rally raid rider, Matthias Walkner, as he picked up second overall. The Red Bull KTM Factory Team rider was a Dakar rookie this time last year, but his astonishing rate of progress has seen him claim the title of 2015 FIM World Cross-Country Rallies Champion following a string of successful results this year..
3. News: Marc Coma retires. Crash.net. Crash Media Group. 3 July 2015. 27 October 2015.
4. Web site: Final Official Classification Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge 2015: Moto-Quad. 2 April 2015. 6 April 2015. Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Automobile and Touring Club of the United Arab Emirates. https://web.archive.org/web/20150409094840/http://www.abudhabidesertchallenge.com/ckfinder/userfiles/files/final%20official%20classification%20moto%20-%20quad.pdf. 9 April 2015. dead.
5. Web site: Final Official Classification Sealine Cross-Country Rally 2015: Moto-Quad. 24 April 2015. 24 April 2015. Sealine Cross-Country Rally. Qatar Motor & Motorcycle Federation. https://web.archive.org/web/20150921200310/http://www.qmmf.com/uploads/SCCR%202015%20-%20MOTO%20-%20Final%20Official%20Classification.pdf. 21 September 2015. dead. dmy-all.
6. Web site: Final Official Classification Rallye des Pharaons 2015: Moto-Quad. 16 May 2015. 17 May 2015. Rallye des Pharaons. Rallye des Pharaons. 21 May 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150521053748/http://www.pharaonsrally.com/en/rally/results/2015/246/. dead.
7. Web site: Final Official Classification Sardegna Rally Race 2015: Moto-Quad. 28 June 2015. 28 June 2015. Sardegna Rally Race. Federazione Italiana Cronometristi.
8. Web site: Final Official Classification Atacama Rally 2015: Moto-Quad. 5 September 2015. 5 September 2015. Atacama Rally. Asociación Cordobesa de Regularidad y Rally. 4 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304083302/http://www.acryr.com.ar/tiempos/2015/atacama/Motos_f_GRAL6.HTM. dead.
9. Web site: Final Official Classification Rallye OiLibya du Maroc 2015: Moto-Quad. 9 October 2015. 9 October 2015. Rallye OiLibya du Maroc. NPO Events. 4 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055152/http://www.kronotek.com/data/npo/2015/maroc/classement.php?etape=5&categorie=bike&type_clt=overall&lang=en. dead.
10. Web site: Rankings – Riders. 5 September 2015. FIM.