Cycle News

KTM SWEEPS DAKAR RALLY I f the first half of the 2019 Dakar Rally didn't have enough twists and turns, the second half was an even wilder ride, with nearly as much action in the bivouac as there was on the racecourse in the final days of the 10-stage rally, leading up to the surprising (and yet totally predictable) finish. Celebrating its 18th consecu- tive victory in the motorcycle cat- egory, Red Bull KTM put all three of its factory riders on the overall podium at the close of Stage 10 in Lima, Peru. Toby Price pulled off his second career victory in the race, followed by former champions Matthias Walkner (2018 winner) in second and Sam Sunderland (2017 winner). For Price, it was a remark- able victory, as he contested the entire rally with an injured wrist. The Australian broke his scaph- oid and had a screw put in only weeks before the rally began. But consistency paid off as he fought through the pain. Despite not winning a single stage (aside from the final one), Price pulled off the victory, only rising to the lead position on Stage 8. "At the end of the day, the pain and torture has been worth it," said Price. "I was only going to do two stages and then pull out and that'll be me done, but the support from everyone back home in Australia, and then I just had some things go my way and a bit of luck, it just worked out in the end. It's been an unreal rally. "Pretty much all I can say is that it feels like there are about five people driving a knife in my wrist now. But at the end of the day the victory has paid off. I'll forget about the pain now, that's for sure." Two major surprises came on the final day of competition: one in the form of a penalty reversal for Sunderland, which boosted him back into podium contention, and two, Pablo Quintanilla's big crash that knocked him out of podium contention. In the curious case of Sam Sunderland, the Brit received a one-hour penalty after Stage 8 for allegedly tampering with the Iritrack on his motorcycle. KTM appealed the decision, and it was later de- termined by the jury that there was not sufficient evidence to uphold the penalty. Sunderland was given his time back, which elevated him to third overall at the finish. Going into Stage 10, Rock- star Energy Husqvarna's Pablo Quintanilla was only one minute away from the overall victory, and with Price at a pain disadvantage, his chances were more than fair. Unfortunately for the Chilean rider, he had a spectacular wreck in the dunes—appearing to knock himself cold—and dropped 20 minutes on the stage. Quintanilla planned to battle for the win, but instead found himself barely finishing off the podium. IN THE WIND P42 Could you ask for a better result? Red Bull KTM riders Toby Price (center), Matthias Walkner (right) and Sam Sunderland (left) swept the podium at the 2019 Dakar Rally. PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARCELO MARAGNI/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

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