Luciano Benavides entered his residence nation’s Desafío Ruta 40 hoping to construct upon being the very best ending points-earning rider within the 2023 version. He ended up leaving in a helicopter within the first stage.
After ending fifth within the Prologue on Sunday, the reigning World Rally-Raid Champion‘s race got here to an abrupt finish when he fell 258 kilometres into Stage #1 and harm his hip. It was a disappointing conclusion after ending second in 2023 en path to the title and in his first begin for the reason that Dakar Rally in January. His brother Kevin needed to withdraw beforehand attributable to accidents sustained in a coaching crash in Might.
Benavides was not the one FIM contender with points. Hani Al-Noumesi had a mechanical flareup that pressured him to retire from the stage, dealing a significant blow to his Quad championship hopes; he was third in factors and the one rider at Argentina with a mathematical shot on the title moreover chief Manuel Andújar, who’s forward of Al-Noumesi by seventeen. Andújar, final 12 months’s Quad DR 40 winner, can clinch the championship a spherical early (he is not going to race the season-ending Rallye du Maroc) if he wins whereas Al-Noumesi fails to podium. Rally2 rider Konrad Dąbrowski, fourth in his class standings, exited with a motorbike problem.
Championship implications have been additionally affected in SSV, the place factors chief Yasir Seaidan was pressured to retire with a mechanical problem after 300 kilometres. Sebastián Guayasamín, who trailed Seaidan by thirty-seven getting into the DR 40, received the leg and is in prime place to grab the highest spot if he stays out of bother the remainder of the rally. Though profitable the race solely nets thirty factors, every stage victory provides 5 extra.
FIA Prologue winner Nasser Al-Attiyah battled with Yazeed Al-Rajhi all through Monday’s stage, however the latter received out after discovering his final wind within the final 100 kilometres to beat him by two minutes; Al-Attiyah additionally acquired a twenty-second penalty to additional improve the hole to 2:20. Lucas Moraes rebounded from ending Sunday with simply three wheels to taking the third step on the rostrum.
Marcos Baumgart bowed out with a mechanical failure at KM 251, the one Final retirement of the day. Sebastián Halpern, working his first W2RC race for the reason that 2023 DR 40, completed fifth however was not secure from bother both as his X-raid Crew was fined €10,000 for an underweight wheel rim found in post-stage scrutineering; one in all his wheels was discovered to weigh 11.969 kilograms when twelve kg is the minimal.
Monster Power Honda Rally Crew swept the bike stage podium with Ricky Brabec narrowly edging out final 12 months’s Ruta 40 winner and Prologue chief Tosha Schareina by one second; since Prologue outcomes rely in direction of the general in FIM, Schareina has a second on Brabec there. Adrien Van Beveren completed third and forty-four seconds again.
“At this time was largely tracks and grime roads and even we had ten kilometres of a sand wash with slightly little bit of navigation, however in any other case it was all good,” mentioned Brabec. “There have been a variety of quick pistes so we did 380 kilometres that have been pretty fast so all in all it was a quick day. After the refuelling, I made a decision to make a push as I had misplaced a little bit of time within the first a part of the stage, so within the second half, I put my head down and actually made certain I might enter and exit the corners with out sliding an excessive amount of. The roads out listed below are slick however we did an excellent job, so I’m wanting ahead to the following 4 days.”
Bradley Cox held off Romain Dumontier by 1:25 for the Rally2 stage win. Cox tailed Dumontier within the standings by simply three factors going into the DR 40.
Fernando Hernández initially beat John Medina for the Rally3 win, however had six minutes added for leaving the neutralisation zone too quickly. Though Medina did the identical, he was solely penalised two minutes.
