2021 DAKAR RALLY REVIEW
P60
Feature
The Dakar saw seven dif-
ferent riders have a turn in the
lead—Brabec, Benavides, Toby
Price (KTM), Xavier De Soul-
trait (Husqvarna), Howes, Jose
Ignacio Cornejo (Honda) and
Joan Barreda (Honda), and by
Stage Eight it looked as though
the battle was between Cornejo
and Price. It would all go wrong
by Stage Nine, as Price crashed
out to leave Cornejo in charge.
However, the very next stage the
same fate befell leader Cornejo,
who would also leave the rally in
a helicopter after crashing and
suffering a concussion.
Brabec was breathing down
his teammate Benavides' neck
and put on a masterclass in
Stage 10 to move to within less
than one minute of the overall
lead, but the Argentine held on
over the next two stages to claim
a historic victory despite Brabec
winning the final stage.
Rounding out the top 10 in
Dakar 2021 was Lorenzo San-
tolino (Sherco), Pablo Quinta-
nilla (Husqvarna), Stefan Svitko
(KTM), Matthias Walkner (KTM)
and Martin Michek (KTM).
American Skyler Howes has
done all he can to stake his
claim for a factory ride in
2022. The Utah man finished
a brilliant fifth overall as
the first privateer home,
consistently registering top
10 finishes ahead of multiple
factory machines.
(Right) "Anything less than
winning is unacceptable," was
how Ricky Brabec described
racing the Dakar. By his own
admission, he failed the task,
but still did the Stars and Stripes
proud by taking second to
Benavides after being as far
back as 15th. His Stage 10 win
was a lesson in how to ride a
rally stage, as the number one
decimated all before him.
