Runner-up spot for Kevin Benavides in the first stage of the Dakar Rally

We won the prologue, but unfortunately, it hit us hard. We opened today and it wasn’t really as easy as we were expecting. The other guys started back and they dealt their cards a little bit better than we did. We didn’t really sit back in the prologue which led us up to the front. Stage one was difficult to navigate. It wasn’t fast. There were tons of rocks and slower speeds. I was trying to manage the rear tyre as we have to go more than one day on this tyre. I wasn’t sure of the speed and some of the other guys were on the gas a little bit harder. Hopefully in the end it’ll all pay off but, as of now, it’s only the first day and we have eleven left. Tomorrow we’ll start a bit further back with sand dunes and sand piste. Hopefully we can push up and make some time back.

Today the navigation was a bit complicated, there were many parallel tracks with many similar routes and directions. In some areas it was a bit difficult to find the WPs, so I wasted a little time there, especially in the rocky area, where I was not very comfortable and I made a couple of mistakes. We will make changes to the suspension to improve in this kind of area. We remain positive as there are 11 stages ahead and we have the chance to reduce the time and climb some positions.

Today was quite a difficult day for the first stage of the Dakar. There was a lot of navigation with very complicated and technical areas and tracks filled with rocks. At the beginning of the special, it was difficult for me to find the right feeling with the bike and the reading of the Roadbook, but then I began to loosen up and feel more at ease. In the final 80 kilometres I managed to catch the guys in front and opened the track, so it was a good day and I am very happy about it. This has just started and this Dakar Rally is already really intense. We will have to make the most of every single day.

Today was a tough day. We started from the first positions and already, in the opening kilometres, there were discrepancies between the kilometres indicated by the radar and the GPS with those of the Roadbook. Ricky and I lost a lot of time there. It wasn’t easy throughout the day, but we hope that they will at least reinstate the time lost.

At the end of the first stage of the race, the four bikes have reached the bivouac. Only Cornejo had a slight fall in a rocky area but it turned out to be nothing. Being a light rider, the stage was not really to his liking, but he finished in a good position to be able to make up time tomorrow. Kevin, from a seventh position start, had the stage to his advantage, because today was a very complicated day for the navigation which could be seen in the average speed of the riders. We did not expect a day with such demanding navigation. Ricky and Joan finished first and second yesterday and today they had to open the track. Obviously, in 277 kilometres of off-piste and stone-filled river beds, they were going to lose time. But there are still eleven stages left and the Dakar is poised to be a very difficult one.

The bikes did not give any problems and the tyres stood up to the tough stage. Fortunately, we have riders in different positions, ready to battle for the race. The aim is to reach the rest stage with all four riders in with a chance of winning the Dakar.