Ricky Brabec is close to securing his second Dakar title. The Monster Energy Honda rider once again strengthened his lead with a victory in the tenth stage held this Wednesday.
It was a closely contested and highly emotional day, with 16 riders separated by less than ten minutes. Brabec (Monster Energy Honda) overcame his teammate José Ignacio Cornejo by just two seconds, with Adrien van Beveren third, 20 seconds behind, completing a Honda «1-2-3».
Daniel Sanders (Red Bull GasGas) also stood out, finishing fourth, 47 seconds behind the fastest time. The big surprise of the day was Harith Noah (Sherco TVS Rally Factory), fifth in the stage, 1m55s off the top. Luciano Benavides (Husqvarna) was sixth, and Ross Branch (Hero MotoSports) finished seventh, losing 3m45s to Brabec.
Thus, the American now has a 10m54s lead over his Botswana rival, with van Beveren third at 11m46s. Cornejo is in fourth place, 13m48s behind, and Kevin Benavides (Red Bull KTM) is fifth, already 32m43s off the top.
Top ten of Stage 10:
Top ten overall: