Australia’s Rodney Faggotter is content with a top 10 overall placing on debut with the Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team at the final round of the 2016 FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship in Morocco last week.

Faggotter completed the final stage in 15th position and believes a contracted virus denied him the chance of reaching his potential on the last day, however he was relieved to cross the line after a challenging and demanding stage.

“It’s been a long day for me but I’m happy I earned a place inside the top 10,” Faggotter explained. “I wasn’t feeling that well since yesterday. I must have caught a kind of virus that made me feel sick. I struggled to reach the finish line today but finally I made it. I’m really happy with the result. It’s just been my first rally as part of the team and I’ve learned so much.”

The Queenslander is now placing his focus on the prestigious Dakar Rally and will begin preparations upon his return to Australia.

“The plan is to return home to Australia now and keep working hard for the upcoming Dakar. This rally has been a great taster of what’s to come and I can’t wait to get at it again in January,” he continued.

The 2017 Dakar Rally is scheduled to commence on 2 January, in Paraguay, which will see competitors navigate their way to Bolivia and before finally concluding the 12-day event in Argentina.