Brabec wins Dakar Stage 1 | Price P3 & Sanders P5

Dakar Race 2023 – Stage 1
Camping on the sea – Sea Camp

It was a good start to the 2023 Dakar Race for Team Monster Energy Honda’s Ricky Brabec, who inherited the Stage victory after Aussie Daniel Sanders was given a two-minute penalty for speeding, knocking him out at the table. opening race ratings.

Fellow Australian Toby Price put in a strong performance to kick-start his Dakar on the first full leg, after winning the Prologue by a second against Sanders yesterday, advancing into the Stage 2 in third place, behind second-placed Kevin Benavides.

Stage one at Dakar Rally 2023 offers 369 km of exceptional action on sandy and rocky tracks, with starting and ending points at Sea Camp – near Yanbu (Southern Arabia).

Joan Barreda left Stage 1 in fourth place after also taking a penalty – one minute, with Sanders fifth due to his two-minute penalty, Sanders showed he was comfortable running with leading speed.

It was a disappointment for GASGAS racer Sam Sunderland, who finished the race too soon and disappointed, the British raced into stage one just 52km.

Leading the jackpot shortly before the incident, the Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing star was airlifted to hospital in Yanbu, where he was diagnosed with a broken shoulder blade. Back pain after the collision forced the plane out.

Sam Sunderland – Withdraw

“Thanks for all the nice messages, I’m more or less fine, broken shoulder blade, massive hematoma on my back and concussion, I feel pretty embarrassed to have to lie here typing these lines, leaving Dakar on the first day was a hard pill to swallow, I would first like to express my disappointment to my team who have worked so hard to provide me with the tools to preserve my life. defend this #1 spot and deserve much more, as do the partners who have supported me. These moments are what makes winning so special, this morning I was feeling so good and was leading for a short part of the race I was riding when I slipped a stone in the sand in the riverbed and bumped into it. touch quite violently. Thanks to Matthias Walkner for stopping by to help me and thanks to the Dakar Rally medical team for making sure I was safe. I will try to learn from this and I hope my teammates can bring the results they deserve. Thank you.”

Outside of the top 5, the leaderboard moves into Phase 2 seeing Mason Klein in sixth place, followed by Pablo Quintanilla, Adrien Van Beveren, Skyler Howes and Matthias Walkner.

Ricky Brabec – P1

“The number one goal is not to open the stage. I feel pretty good and confident after today, but I’m going to try every day, keep pace and stay in the Top 10. It’s going to be very difficult to get out of the top – as we saw today – but we have to see how it goes until the day off. Today was pretty simple, no stress, it was a great day!”

Kevin Benavides – P2

“I had a good day today – it is encouraging to start the rally with a positive result. It feels like a very long day, but I think every day before the day off will be the same. I’m happy with my result, I’m second, but less than a minute behind the winner on stage. It doesn’t give me the best starting position for tomorrow, but I will aim to chase the guys ahead. Overall, I’m happy the rally is going and looking forward to the rest of the race.”

Price Toby – P3

“Phase one went well for me. I saw Sam (Sunderland) crashed at km 70, and it’s not good to see one of your teammates fall like that. After that, I just focused on my road book and made sure I didn’t make any big mistakes on the way to the finish line. It’s been a long race and we have a long way to go. My goal right now is to speak safely and consistently.”

Daniel Sanders – P5

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a race and it’s great to be back there today. Early on, I caught up with Kevin Benavides and for most of the race we just rode together, hitting the kilometres. I really enjoyed the terrain. This is my first real race on the new generation bike, so everything is pretty new for me today and it’s great to get a good result early. I can’t wait to be back here in Dakar and I look forward to enjoying each day as it arrives.”

Pablo Quintanilla – P7

“We started the morning with fast-flowing valleys and rocky river beds so the first part was quite challenging. I enjoyed the second part, after the first disabling, where we got faster tracks and sand in the open desert. I feel good, pretty fast and have a good rhythm.”

Adrien Van Beveren – P8

“At the beginning of the process, I struggled to see the stones as if they were hidden in the sand. In the second part of the leg, I got really better – I am satisfied with my performance and want to continue down this path throughout the rally.”

Skyler Howes – P9

“Honestly, I was pretty nervous going into phase one today. You spent the whole year preparing for this event, and starting today, I had a lot of worries. It was a bit stressful at first because I knew I was going to be right near the front, but the front driver opened up so well that I was able to relax a bit. I made some minor mistakes with navigation, but other than that, the day went very well. Dakar revolves around managing whatever is thrown at you and so I’m happy with how the race started – the racing feeling is great, I have a good starting position for tomorrow and I’m excited continue.”

Matthias Walkner – P10

“It was a really difficult period, especially since I haven’t raced in such a long time. My day didn’t get off to a great start either after finding Sam (Sunderland) crashed in one of the rocky stretches of the river. It is never good to see a friend in such a situation. I stayed with Sam until paramedics arrived and then I went out alone. It was difficult to judge my speed and so I aimed for a good ending. The bike is doing great, I just have to keep doing my best and make the most of each day as it comes.”

Luciano Benavides – P14

“The first day was not the best for me. Everything is going well and I feel fine riding, but at about 55 km I made a small mistake and missed a slide. That ended up in me around to find my way again. Unfortunately that meant it took me almost 10 minutes and had to find my focus again. I managed to increase my speed in the second half of the stage and step back for a bit. But as we know in Dakar it was a very long race and these things happened. Thankfully, to get some positives for the day, the bike performed very well and I felt comfortable pushing hard. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

José Ignacio Cornejo – P15

“Today is a day that could turn out badly because I have to open. I did my best and in the end the result was amazing. I like to navigate, I’m not too confident because when you’re there you can make mistakes – so it’s a good morale and way to face these situations.”

The second leg of this year’s Dakar Rally will leave Sea Camp in the direction of Al-Ula. This particular course will feature 430 km of closed roads that require great handling skills, so riders will mostly ride on dirt (59%), rocks (26%) and just a little bit of sand (14) % sugar and 1% sand dunes).

In addition to this section, there are other 159 km of coalition forces. Navigation will be key as participants reach magnificent canyons and stunning landscapes near the finish line.

According to the ASO organization, the stage will be decided on the dunes, with several majestic Nabataean temples visible across the landscape.

2023 Dakar Rally Stage 1 Overall Leaderboard

2023 Dakar Rally Stage 1 Provisional Results

Dakar race schedule 2023