Coma and Despres Give Pirelli 1-2 Finish at Dakar

Rome, Ga. – After two weeks of racing across the world’s most grueling and treacherous terrain, Dakar 2009 came to a close on Sunday in Bueno Aires, Argentina. In the end, Pirelli Tire was triumphant as KTM Repsol’s Marc Coma and Red Bull KTM’s Cyril Despres took the top two positions on the podium.

The Spaniard Coma and Frenchman Despres were top competitors throughout the 15 stages. In all, Pirelli-backed riders won seven stages of the 3,512 mile round-trip race between Buenos Aires, Argentina and Valparaíso, Chile, including Coma’s teammate Jordi Viladoms of Spain. He concluded the rally with a seventh-place overall, while Brazil’s Rodrigues Filho earned a 12th-place finish aboard his Team Honda Brazil 450cc machine.

Pirelli and KTM worked closely in tire development for Dakar 2009 for two years leading up to the event. Out of a field of 235 riders, seven outfitted their bikes with Pirelli rubber. Of the seven, Coma, Despres, and Viladoms finished among the top seven positions overall with Filho capturing third overall in the 450cc class, making for a largely successful outing for Pirelli Tire.

Pirelli Tire North America designs, develops, manufactures and markets tires for passenger vehicles in both the original equipment and replacement markets as well as markets and distributes tires for motorcycle and motorsports. Located in Rome, Georgia, Pirelli’s Modular Integrated Robotized System (MIRS) employs state-of-the-art technology to manufacture tires for both export and domestic markets.  For more information please visit www.us.pirelli.com.