The Dakar of 2024 have come pretty much to an end, with Ross Branch failing to beat Ricky Brabec in the overall standings despite taking the win on today’s Stage 11. He congratulated his rival and acknowledged the need to keep working to get better.
In the official website of the competition, the rider from Hero said: ‘It was way better than last year’s same stage. I enjoyed it, it was good fun. For sure, it was a tough stage and really, really rocky all the time, but I enjoyed it and tried to put the hammer down. I think I’ve left it a little bit too late’, before praising his main opponent and most likely Dakar winner:
– Ricky is riding an amazing race and he deserves to be where he is. We’ve just got to keep on fighting and see what we can do for tomorrow, for the last day. I definitely lost time in the camel grass.
He then came to address his own performance and how he can make things to improve on: ‘I’ve got a bit of work to do in the camel grass and the off-piste stuff. I’m just not confident and fast enough there. I know where I’ve lost it and it gives me motivation to go home and I’ll have another year to work on it. First thing on the list is going to find some camel grass and doing some training there. It’s always good knowing you’ve got somebody behind you with the same bike, if there’s something that you need then they’re there quickly, but I don’t think it changed the race, I don’t think it changed the strategy’.
And continued: ‘We just gave it our best all day, every day and I’m proud of the team, they’ve worked so hard. Just to finish is going to be a big bonus for us. If we can get on that podium that will be really cool for all of us. They’ve worked really hard and I take my hat of to them, with the endless hours they’ve done. I’ve also worked hard and to everybody back home, for all the support, it’s been incredible. There’s one more day to go, 180 km of the Dakar 2024, so let’s enjoy it. I’m not too sure of the times, I’m not too sure of what happened to Nacho. You know, we don’t get on the bike to finish second. So, we’ll give it our all and hope for the best’.