A 3’20” LEAD WITH ONLY ONE STAGE REMAINING MEANS BRABEC HAS ONE HAND ON THE TROPHY
The plan unfolded brilliantly on stage 12 of the Dakar Rally. Even though he started stage 11 in the lead and ended at a 23-second disadvantage, Ricky Brabec’s strategy was working according to plan. By allowing rival Luciano Benavides to gain back some time, Brabec started sixth on stage 12 which set the stage for a big comeback. Doing so enabled Brabec to slingshot himself back into the lead, this time with a 3-minute 43-second gap over second place Benavides, giving him a 3-minute 20-second advantage in the overall ranking with only one stage remaining. The pivotal move means Brabec has one hand on his third Dakar trophy.
“I tried to ride carefully but took many risks today to make a good push,” said Brabec. “We’ve still got one day to go. Luciano has been riding really well through the whole rally so I got to give it up to him. We’ve been fighting every single day. It’s truly cool to see and I think people that are watching at home are really enjoying the results every day because it’s so back and forth. It makes for good racing and it makes for good television.”
“It was a really tough day,” said Benavides. “I gave everything from the start. I pushed early, and from around kilometer 150 I was opening the stage, which was definitely not easy in these conditions. We lost a bit of time, but I’m happy because I gave 100% and we’re still in the fight. There’s just one shorter stage left tomorrow and we’ll keep pushing and believing right until the final kilometer.”
It wasn’t an easy day for Skyler Howes, who opened the track after his stage 11 victory. He and Adrien Van Beveren went back and forth, leading the way through stage 12 but navigation errors slowed AVB, and an oil leak forced Howes to limp his Honda into the finish where he finished 11th overall, 24 minutes down. Even so, Howes managed to advance to fourth overall in the ranking.
In the Rally 2 ranks, things aren’t as rosy for American Preston Campbell, who ceded even more time to class leader Tony Mulec. He now trails by 6 minutes 12 seconds. Campbell finished ninth on the stage just ahead of Mason Klein in 10th. Campbell still sits 2nd in Rally 2 and 10th overall.
Despite his injury, Daniel Sanders is still pushing through for a finish. Stage 12 was a struggle for the injured Aussie, with lots of loose rocks, riverbeds and technical terrain. He finished 15th on the stage, 35 minutes down, and slips to fifth in the overall standings.
“It looked like a nice stage if you had two arms,” Sanders quipped. “But in those more technical parts I had to work hard just to manage it. I did have a small crash, and the bike took a bit of a hit, but the main focus was staying smart and getting through the stage without doing anything silly. The muscles are sore from compensating, but that’s just part of it. The team has worked incredibly hard and they’ve put a lot of trust in me, so finishing this Dakar is important for all of us. There is one more day to go, around 100 kilometers, so we’ll recover as best we can, recharge the batteries and give it everything to reach the finish.”
STAGE 12
- RICKY BRABEC 03h 19′ 01″
- LUCIANO BENAVIDES +00h 03′ 43″
- TOSHA SCHAREINA +00h 12′ 58″
- ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN +00h 13′ 07″
- MICHAEL DOCHERTY +00h 17′ 11″
- MARTIM VENTURA +00h 18′ 51″
- TONI MULEC +00h 19′ 01″
- ROSS BRANCH +00h 22′ 42″
- PRESTON CAMPBELL +00h 22′ 46″
- MASON KLEIN +00h 23′ 48″
- SKYLER HOWES +00h 24′ 24″
- EDGAR CANET +00h 27′ 43″
- BRADLEY COX +00h 28′ 42″
- IGNACIO “NACHO” CORNEJO +00h 29′ 38″
- DANIEL SANDERS +00h 35′ 22″
OVERALL STANDINGS
- RICKY BRABEC 48h 08′ 12″
- LUCIANO BENAVIDES +00h 03′ 20″
- TOSHA SCHAREINA +00h 27′ 51″
- SKYLER HOWES +00h 58′ 21″
- DANIEL SANDERS +00h 58′ 31″
- ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN +01h 06′ 57″
- IGNACIO “NACHO” CORNEJO +01h 40′ 05″
- ROSS BRANCH +02h 48′ 15″
- TONI MULEC +02h 55′ 16″
- PRESTON CAMPBELL +03h 01′ 28″
- MARTIM VENTURA +04h 34′ 41″
- BRADLEY COX +04h 42′ 10″
- KONRAD DABROWSKI +05h 18′ 25″
- MASON KLEIN +05h 20′ 33″
- NERIMANTAS JUCIUS +05h 28′ 40″
