a 15th-place start meant chasing,
rather than leading. Price domi-
nated the stage for the win, but
still missed the overall podium by
only seven seconds. It was Hon-
da top guy Joan Barreda who
landed the final podium position,
the Monster Energy Honda rider
carding second on stage five to
solidify the point.
Fellow factory Honda rider
Ricky Brabec rounded out the
top-five, the American rider
came into the final day hop-
ing to repeat his podium finish
from 2018 with another, but a
second-place start meant he
had the lead the field, put him
at a critical disadvantage. "The
day was complicated for me as
I had to open the track for the
final 100 km on very fast tracks.
I was hoping to finish stronger,
but throughout the rally the differ-
ences between the riders was
very little and every day we were
changing positions. Anyway, I am
happy to have finished the whole
race and to have prepared for
the Dakar, where I will arrive with
more confidence."
In the end, Brabec could only
muster a ninth-place finish on the
final day, carding fifth overall in
the event.
The Morocco Rally is the final
world-championship event be-
fore the 2020 Dakar Rally, com-
ing in two months. Teams are
now looking to carry their race
preparation and momentum into
the biggest race of the year, and
after celebrating its first-ever 1-2
victory at an FIM World Champi-
onship Rally, Andrew Short and
the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna
team have a lot of momentum to
ride. CN
IN
THE
WIND
P44
Ricky Brabec was
hoping to land
another podium
finish in Morocco,
but the American
had to settle for
fifth overall.
