CHALLENGING DAY IN THE DESERT FOR SANDERS AS STAGE NINE SERVES UP SOME TESTING NAVIGATION

RED BULL GASGAS FACTORY RACING’S DANIEL SANDERS DIGS DEEP TO COMPLETE THE SPECIAL AND REMAINS POSITIVE ABOUT THE DAYS AHEAD



Week two of the Dakar begins with a frustrating start
Daniel lies ninth overall after challenging special stage
Stage 10 up next and it’s set to be a sandy one!

Daniel Sanders: “Today was always going to be tough leading out and early on I quickly caught up with the leading riders. There was a note in the roadbook to head up into a rocky plateau but once up there it was really hard to find the way. I reckon I lost around 15 minutes or so there, but that’s how rally goes sometimes. It’s a little frustrating but all I can do is keep moving forward and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

Eager to kick off week two with another solid stage result, Daniel maintained a blistering pace through the early part of the ninth special in his bid to lose the least amount of time as possible to his rivals, who all benefitted from following the tire tracks left in the sand by his awesome RX 450F. But as is sometimes the way in rally, navigating through unridden, rocky terrain with minimal roadbook instructions can be seriously tough. Nevertheless, despite knowing he was losing time, Sanders remained cool, eventually finding the right way. After that it was full gas to the finish line!

Results (provisional): Dakar Rally 2023, stage 9 
1. Luciano Benavides (Husqvarna) 3:18:44
2. Toby Price (KTM) 3:19:46
3. Skyler Howes (Husqvarna) 3:21:41
20. Daniel Sanders (GASGAS) 3:38:25

Overall Provisional Classification (after stage 9)
1. Skyler Howes (Husqvarna) 33:55:57
2. Toby Price (KTM) 33:56:00
3. Kevin Benavides (KTM) 34:01:06
9. Daniel Sanders (GASGAS) 34:19:44

 

Download high-res images from the 2023 Dakar Rally here.