Branch Leads Rallye du Maroc
T
he 2024 running of the Rallye
du Maroc is underway. It's the
fifth and final round of the 2024
World Rally Raid Championship.
Hero Motorsports' Ross Branch
currently leads the W2RC points
standings, just nine markers clear
of Honda HRC's Ricky Brabec. The
prologue stage, which consisted
of a 31-mile liaison followed by
a 16-mile special, was the first
chance for the riders to stretch
their legs in the Morocco desert.
Tosha Schareina topped the
charts with his time of 16:54, the
only rider to finish in the sub-
17-minute range. Branch took
second, 18 seconds back from
the Honda rider. Daniel Sanders,
riding aboard his new Red Bull
KTM machine, crossed the line
a close third, just six-tenths of a
second back from Branch.
Stage one on October 7 marked
the first real day of racing, during
which the competitors faced a
107-mile liaison and a 111-mile
special. Floods in the area forced
the organizers to reroute the race,
using Tuesday's course as stage
one. The course will now run
stage one's original route as stage
two. The stone-riddled riverbeds
and fast-paced roads proved chal
-
lenging, as the conditions later
transitioned into the area's more
familiar sand dunes.
Points leader Ross Branch
came away victorious on stage
one with a time of two hours and
16 minutes, 48 seconds clear of
Sanders back in second. After
choosing an 11th place start in the
Prologue, Branch had the advan-
tage of starting behind and gained
crucial time throughout the stage.
Prologue winner, Schareina, took
third 1:48 behind Branch.
Ricky Brabec suffered his share
of issues in the dunes during
stage one. An injury to his knee
saw him finish more than 19
minutes behind the leaders and
eventually withdraw from the rally
after visiting a nearby hospital.
"I caught Pablo [Quintanilla]
early on and we were riding well
together," said Brabec. "I jumped
a dune, but when I landed, I
bottomed the frame out on the
WIND
IN THE
P56
Hero's Ross Branch
is the early leader of
the Rallye du Maroc.
