press release
157KB
january 14, 2016 - Honda Racing
Team HRC overcomes the adversities of the second marathon stage
Team HRC overcomes the adversities of the second marathon stage
Team HRC’s Paulo Gonçalves put yesterday’s marathon stage problems firmly behind him in stage ten of the #dakar2016. The Portuguese rider finished fourth on the day with American team-mate Ricky Brabec also among the top ten. Argentinean Kevin Benavides from Honda South America Rally Team grabs second place in the timed section.
The tenth outing so far in the 2016 Rally Dakar, for the umpteenth time, fell victim to extreme weather. The 278 scheduled kilometres of timed special stage that connect the Belén bivouac with La Rioja were cut short, 30 kilometres shy of the final finish-line. Again a swollen river, too deep to cross, was enough for race authorities to stop the course prematurely.
At the end of yesterday’s drama-filled escapade, Paulo Gonçalves, alongside Team HRC sidekicks Michael Metge, Ricky Brabec and Paolo Ceci, set to work on the Honda #crf450rally, whose radiator had been pierced by a log. Once substituted, they were able to see that the piston, previously believed to be damaged, was in fact sound and some adjustments to the bike’s compression were all that were necessary to get the machine road-worthy.
After the cancellation yesterday of the latter part of stage nine, Goncalves started out today from thirteenth position with an atypical start that saw cars, trucks and bikes head off together in groups. The Portuguese ace fought his way up the field before posting a final fourth position some six minutes off the day’s winner. Gonçalves thus consolidates his overall third place.
Ricky Brabec continues to take to his debut Dakar like a duck to water. After the second place finish in yesterday’s stage, the American today picked up an eighth place, 13’47” behind the stage victor. Brabec also lies in eighth in the general standings. Team-mate Paolo Ceci had a trouble-free day, nevertheless, Michael Metge was unable to take the start this morning.
Honda South America Rally Team continue to churn out excellent performances with a red-hot Kevin Benavides (Argentina) making a scorching Dakar debut, this time finishing runner-up to Svitko (Slovakia). Another newcomer to the world’s toughest rally, Adrien Metge (France) scored an eleventh place finish, his best partial result to date. The youngest of the Metge brothers climbs to twelfth place overall.
TOMORROW’ STAGE
2016 January 14. Stage 11: La Rioja – San Juan
Special sections: 431km
Total: 712km
Time for an attack
The level of difficulty remains the same, but variety will favour the most flexible of drivers and teams. Sand in all its forms will feature, particularly fesh-fesh, the most volatile and heavy kind, which demands both dexterity and patience. But speed will also be an advantage in other, straighter sections, featuring gravel and pebbles. Opportunities will be few and far between, but there is still time to shake up the standings, since the terrain will be favourable to creating significant gaps.
569665d34e6a28.85027219
800x533, 79KB
56966608c18921.68505550
800x533, 87KB
56966610ecab68.09016167
800x533, 112KB
56966620e16d24.85512308
800x533, 110KB
569665840d65b7.58184847
800x533, 64KB
5696661869e9f5.21839622
800x534, 116KB
5696662908de09.36944067
800x533, 106KB
Related news |
||
|
|
|
march 21, 2024
|
february 23, 2024
|
january 22, 2024
|
|
Model updates: Honda’s uniquely styled Neo Sports Café 125cc machine receives fresh styling touches and a new full 5in colour TFT ... |
As the dust settles on last month's 2024 Dakar Rally it's already time for rally-raid engines to rev back into life. A world class... |
There was drama right up until the finish line of the 2024 Dakar Rally and the Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team were at the heart of ... |
Download all 
You might be interested in |
||
|
|
|
january 22, 2024
|
january 22, 2024
|
january 17, 2024
|
|
Audi made history at the 2024 Dakar Rally with the first victory for an electric drive with a high-voltage battery and energy conv... |
History was made at the 46th Dakar Rally when the Ultimate class was won for the first-time ever by a car equipped with electric d... |
The navigation riddles returned on Stage Nine of the 2024 Dakar Rally as the current crop of race leaders defended their spots at ... |
Italian 
Download all 
Share
Share via mail 
Automotive
Sport
Events
Art&Culture
Design
Fashion&Beauty
Food&Hospitality
Technology
Nautica
Racing
Excellence
Corporate
OffBeat
Green
Gift
Pop
Heritage
Entertainment
Health & Wellness