Dakar Rally 2019: Oriol Mena Breaks Into Top 10 In Stage 8; Aravind KP Climbs To 39th Overall

The 2019 Dakar Rally is heading towards the final stages and the Indian teams have certainly put their best foot forward over the past days. Stage 8 saw competitors battle a day of fog, dust and dunes as they made their way from San Juan de Marcona to Pisco. Hero MotoSports Team Rally's Oriol Mena finished the day with an impressive 12th position, and broke into an into the top 10 in overall standings. Mena has been flawless through the stages and despite facing a setback in Stage 5 after a crash, the rider has had a brilliant run to make up for lost time.

q21ob39g

Oriol Mena could end the 2019 Dakar Rally in top 10

Speaking on his performance, Oriol Mena said, "When I started today, it looked like a difficult and dangerous stage so I decided to ride safe and steady with no crashes or mistakes. The Stage terrain was completely damaged due to the previous stage tracks and mixed start. So I focussed on my rhythm and rode more like an endure race with good speed and flow. I am really happy to be across the finish line today and now only 2 more days to go!"

Teammate Joaquim Rodrigues has been putting some incredible times over the past stages and Stage 8 was no different with the rider finishing in 13th place. Rodrigues is now placed 18th in the overall rankings, despite having hurt his bike while handling the fast stage during the day. Finishing against all odds, Rodriguess said, "Today was a really difficult with lot of fog in the mountain and lot of fesh-fesh with rocks making it extremely dangerous to push ahead. I encountered dangerous large hole in the track, which wasn't mentioned in the road-book. I hit the hole really hard and hurt my back. I am a little bit in pain but happy to finish the line and we see how it goes tomorrow."
 
Stage 8 was another fast stage in the 2019 Dakar Rally and the foggy conditions made it difficult for the riders to start in the morning. Being the Super Ica stage, it saw the fastest 10 competitors from each of the categories - Moto, cars, quads and trucks start together one after another. The dust from the lead made it difficult for the other riders to keep over the 207 km liaison followed by the 360 km special section, the longest of the rally this year.

hv6abr94

Michael Metge finished the stage in 10th place and sits 24th overall

At Sherco TVS, the riders showed incredible performance through the day facing the same conditions. Adrien Metge was the fastest rider at Sherco finishing the stage in 8th place, despite a minor wrist injury. The rider now sits 26th in overall rankings. Michael Metge too had an impressive run despite the weather conditions and finished the stage in 10th place, and is placed 24th in overall standings.

Commenting on the stage, Michael Metge says, "It was a challenging stage with the bad weather and order of vehicles at the start point. As the rally moves closer to the end, I feel the urge to make up for the time lost in the initial stages and record my best timings once we reach Lima at the end of the rally."

4tmgtu0g

Aravind KP sits in 39th place overall, climbing 8 positions over yesterday

Aravind KP has has been one of the most steady performers of this season at Dakar and finished the stage in 39th position at the end of the day. The rider has climbed up to eight positions over Stage 7 in the overall rankings and is placed at 39th overall. Speaking on his progress, Aravind KP said, "The low visibility at the start was a concern for me and I didn't take any chances. I really enjoyed my ride once I hit the dunes and managed to improve my rankings. It was a very long stage and I am happy to have completed it."

Stage 9 is the penultimate stage of the 2019 Dakar Rally and will see the riders start from Pisco for a 313 km loop of special section, before moving to Lima for the grand finale.



from NDTV CarAndBike - Latest News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Harley-Davidson Streetfighter Spotted In Flesh For The First Time

Image
Harley-Davidson unveiled a range of new motorcycles last year that included an adventure tourer, streetfighter and Custom range. This, along with the LiveWire electric motorcycle defines the new-age 21st century offerings from the manufacturer as it taps into newer markets and caters to an evolving customer base. Now, giving a glimpse of the new models out in the open, the new Harley-Davidson Streetfighter was spotted in the prototype version at what seems to be a trade show in the US, giving a good glimpse at motorcycle looks like in flesh. While board says 'Styling Prototype', the production-spec version of the Streetfighter is likely to stay identical to the model showcased here. In addition to the Streetfighter, the Pan America was also showcased at the same event. The production spec versions of both bikes could be unveiled at EICMA this year. Also Read: Harley-Davidson Livewire To Be Unveiled In India In August The Harley-Davidson Streetfighter is a completely new mot
Read more

Brixton 1200 To Rival Triumph Bonneville T120

Image
A 1200 cc modern classic with similar design lines as Triumph's iconic Bonneville series, has reportedly been cleared for production. The bike was showcased as a concept at last year's EICMA motorcycle show, and from the looks of it, this is a model developed in China with the Triumph Bonneville T120 in its sights. The Brixton brand though is part of Austria's KSR Group, which imports bikes from several Chinese manufacturers, including CF Moto. And while the new Bonneville rival will be manufactured in China, the design and engineering has been created at KSR's design centre in Krups, Austria. Also Read: Triumph Bonnville T120 First Ride Review The Brixton 1200 cc motorcycle has not been named yet, or a launch timeline announced So far, the company has not committed to a launch date yet, but says that it will eventually make it to production. And from the looks of it, that may well be sometime later this year, maybe even at the EICMA 2020 show in Milan, Italy, in
Read more

Zongshen Cyclone RX6 Based On Norton 650 Nearing Completion

Image
While there still doesn't seem to be a buyer for iconic British brand Norton Motorcycles which went into administration in January this year, the firm's 650 cc parallel-twin seems to be finding life in China. While Norton apparently sold off the engine rights of its 961 engine to China's Jinglang just before the brand went into administration, the deal for the 650 cc engine was finalized way back in 2017 with Chinese giant Zongshen. The 650 cc parallel-twin engine was due to be used in Norton's Atlas and Superlight models, but now it looks like that engine platform will make its debut in a Zongshen motorcycle, called the Cyclone R6. Also Read: How Much Is Norton Motorcycles Worth Now? One of the patent designs shows the Cyclone RX6 with full touring accessories and luggage Two prototypes fitted with the 650 cc parallel-twin engine were shown in China late last year, on the Zongshen Cyclone RX6 adventure bike and the RX6 sport tourer. Both bikes used Zongshen-made
Read more