Monster Energy Honda Team double in Abu Dhabi, extending their world championship lead

We have finished the rally and I am very happy to be on the podium. Today was a difficult last stage for me. I tried to push as hard as I could and towards the middle of the special I caught the riders in front, so I had to open the track until the end. I lost a few minutes at the finish, but that was to be expected. I'm very happy with the result. It was a tough race, with little time to rest and prepare for the race after the Dakar, so now we are back on our schedule. I wish to thank the team for the great work done during all this week and now we can go back home to prepare for the next challenge.

We finished the race. I had a great time on the bike, with some very good feelings. I had some setbacks that left me out of the fight but there is nothing left to do but keep working. I think we are doing things right. Despite not being happy with seventh place, I will keep working to get the results that we are looking for. We are already focusing on the forthcoming championship races. The team has worked very well all week and I want to thank them for that. I also want to congratulate my team-mates Ricky and Pablo who finished on the podium.

The final stage was great. The times were very close. We knew that it was going to be tough today to make up enough time in the overall standings. I did what I could to get onto the podium. I got ahead of my team-mate Pablo who also had a good push today. Overall it was a good rally. The team and the riders did a good job. The rally was tight all week with times going back and forth. Unfortunately, Sam was the one who stopped longer in the prologue and had the advantage from day one and today on day five. The rally is coming to those who stop the longest in the prologue. We knew it would be hard to beat Sam – he used to live out here. We did our best for the team and we’re looking forward to the next one. Thanks to all the team.

We have come to the end of this Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. It has been an interesting race for us. We were missing Joan, a fast rider who adapts well to this kind of race, but we were here with the rest of the team. It went well, without issues. Only one crash for Nacho yesterday, but apart from that, everything went well, almost perfectly, I would say. The race route and the safety of the rally were also good. We were the winners of the manufacturers’ competition and it gives us an additional advantage in the World Championship. Pablo is still second and Ricky has moved up a few positions. All of this gives us confidence to face the next test for the team in Andalusia.