Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1071335
IN THE WIND P42 you're actually out there and navi- gating. I'm looking forward to the next three days. I think me and Quintanilla are going to fight back and forth until the last kilometer. The key is to not make a mistake, but it's really difficult." But Quintanilla took a signifi- cant step backwards on Stage 7, slipping from first place back to fifth, and nearly 10 minutes out of the lead after a trying day. But thus far, the Chilean rider has managed to boost himself back into the lead multiple times after falling back. Brabec is quickly finding out more difficulties to leading the Dakar Rally. He shared on social media that someone may have tried to alter his suspension set- tings after Stage 4, when he first took the overall lead. "What a shame someone had the balls to mess with my suspension clicks over night in marathon, thanks for the compression," an Instagram post read. Yamaha's top gun Adrien Van Beveren is currently second overall. The Frenchman led the class in 2018 only to crash out in a spectacular wreck. After spend- ing most of the year recuperat- ing, Van Beveren is hungry for redemption. Red Bull KTM rider Toby Price sits third overall in what has prov- en to be an eventful race with the top-10 in constant flux. Price is at- tempting to remain consistent, but is riding with an injured wrist. The Australian broke his scaphoid (a bone in his right wrist) only three weeks before the start is the Dakar and had it screwed back into place. Al- though he is soldiering on, he is quite visibly riding in pain. "It's getting worse," said Price. "It's going to be hard, but we're just trying to keep pace. We'll see what happens." Price (2016 winner of the Dakar Rally) is part of the three-member factory KTM effort; the Red Bull- backed team is gunning for its 18th-straight victory in the Dakar with its trio of returning champi- ons including Sam Sunderland (2017 winner) and Matthias Walkner (2018 winner) who are sitting fourth and seventh overall, respectively. Only one second adrift of Sunderland is Quintanilla in fifth, leaving less than 10 min- utes separating the top-five. With three stages remaining, it's still anyone's game, and the factory teams of Honda, Yamaha, KTM and Husqvarna are all within strik- ing distance of the grand victory. American rider Andrew Short has been going strong in the Peruvian dunes, being sure to remain in a support role to his teammate, Quintanilla. Short has been hovering at the bottom of the top-10, and currently sits ninth overall. American privateer Skyler Howes had some impressive stages, even finishing in the top-10 overall and moving into 18th place on Stage 5. The paddock quickly took notice of the "sturdy American" rookie Dakar rider, but Howes' effort came to a halt on Stage 6 when he injured his shoulder. "Really sad to say that after dis- locating my shoulder twice within the first 30km of SS6, I've chose to withdraw to allow myself to heal," said Howes. "But I'm alive, healthy and I gave it my all." Howes' Klymciw Husqvarna teammate Garrett Poucher is currently at 45th overall. Nathan Rafferty, the final American rider in the field, is 57th overall. Jean Turner Dakar Rally Overall Bike: Stage 7 1. Ricky Brabec (Hon) 24:48:02 2. Adrien Van Beveren (Yam) +07:47 3. Toby Price (KTM) +08:28 4. Sam Sunderland (KTM) +09:58 5. Pablo Quintanilla (Hus) +09:59 6. Kevin Benavides (Hon) +16:15 7. Matthias Walkner (KTM) +16:16 8. Stefan Svitko (KTM) +37:09 9. Andrew Short (Hus) +39:17 10. Xavier De Soultrait (Yam) +40:08 Despite racing with a broken wrist, Red Bull KTM's Toby Price is still going strong. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KTM/MARCIN KIN