Dakar 2021 Stage 3, a 277km liaison and a 403 special loop around Wadi Ad-Dawasir, took competitors across the big sand dunes once more and ended with Australian Toby Price (KTM) winning the stage, American Skyler Howes taking fourth place, and Argentinean Kevin Benavides (Honda) coming in second with Matthias Walkner (KTM) bouncing back and placing third. Joan Barreda Bort came in 30th, while last year’s Dakar champion Ricky Brabec fell back today coming in 25th, placing him 13th in the overall rankings while Howes is now first.
“Another fast day up front with the boys. This week has been one for the books, a wild one so far with the rubber band effect going on between all competitors”, Brabec commented today.
For Skyler Howes, Stage 3 ended with an excellent result, and the American privateer says he’s there to do his best.
“Another fun day in the desert. I keep saying it, but I’m just having a lot of fun on the motorcycle. Today the dunes flowed really well and I felt comfortable there. Then we got out into the open desert on the really fast sandy tracks and I felt right at home. I told myself if I was feeling good, then I’d let it ride. I caught up with Chucky, Luciano, and Xavier and we all had this huge battle, like a four or five-way battle the whole way for the last hundred and fifty kilometers. It was a lot of fun, it really was and I’m just having a blast here in Saudi Arabia. You know what? I expect a lot out of myself. I hold myself to a high standard, but at the end of the day, I’m a privateer out here and I paid my own way to get here, so I’m just doing the best I can and having fun every day. At the end of the stage, whatever result I get, I’m usually happy with it, because I’m just on my dirt-bike”, Howes said after finishing the stage.
Tomorrow, the competitors will face a long, 476km liaison and a 337km special from Wadi Ad-Dawasir to Riyadh; the organizers say this will be the longest transfer stage during the rally, but that the short special doesn’t mean it’s time to relax.
Dakar 2021 Stage Three Rankings:
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | MARK-MODEL | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 3 |
(AUS) TOBY PRICE
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM | 03H 33′ 23” |
2 | 47 |
(ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2021 | 03H 34′ 39” |
3 | 52 |
(AUT) MATTHIAS WALKNER
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM | 03H 35′ 59” |
4 | 9 |
(USA) SKYLER HOWES
|
BAS DAKAR KTM RACING TEAM | 03H 39′ 39” |
5 | 5 |
(GBR) SAM SUNDERLAND
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM | 03H 41′ 47” |
6 | 12 |
(FRA) XAVIER DE SOULTRAIT
|
HT RALLY RAID HUSQVARNA RACING | 03H 42′ 13” |
7 | 6 |
(ARG) FRANCO CAIMI
|
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA RALLY TEAM | 03H 43′ 27” |
8 | 21 |
(AUS) DANIEL SANDERS
|
KTM FACTORY TEAM | 03H 44′ 45” |
9 | 19 |
(PRT) RUI GONCALVES
|
SHERCO FACTORY | 03H 45′ 42” |
10 | 4 | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2021 | 03H 46′ 32” | |
11 | 22 |
(POL) MACIEJ GIEMZA
|
ORLEN TEAM | 03H 47′ 34” |
12 | 77 |
(ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES
|
ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING | 03H 47′ 59” |
13 | 15 |
(ESP) LORENZO SANTOLINO
|
SHERCO FACTORY | 03H 48′ 19” |
14 | 68 |
(GBR) JAMIE MCCANNEY
|
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA RALLY TEAM | 03H 48′ 50” |
15 | 87 |
(ESP) ORIOL MENA
|
FN SPEED – RIEJU TEAM | 03H 49′ 20” |
16 | 42 |
(FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN
|
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA RALLY TEAM | 03H 49′ 45” |
17 | 18 |
(BWA) ROSS BRANCH
|
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA RALLY TEAM | 03H 49′ 47” |
18 | 27 |
(PRT) JOAQUIM RODRIGUES
|
HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 03H 49′ 51” |
19 | 31 |
(CZE) MARTIN MICHEK
|
ORION – MOTO RACING GROUP | 03H 50′ 26” |
20 | 36 |
(CZE) JAN BRABEC
|
STROJRENT RACING | 03H 50′ 30” |
21 | 24 |
(DEU) SEBASTIAN BÜHLER
|
HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 03H 51′ 26” |
22 | 11 |
(SVK) STEFAN SVITKO
|
SLOVNAFT RALLY TEAM | 03H 51′ 37” |
23 | 2 |
(CHL) PABLO QUINTANILLA
|
ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING | 03H 52′ 38” |
24 | 74 |
(ESP) JAUME BETRIU
|
FN SPEED – KTM TEAM | 03H 53′ 01” |
25 | 1 |
(USA) RICKY BRABEC
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2021 | 03H 55′ 02” |
26 | 44 |
(ESP) LAIA SANZ
|
GAS GAS FACTORY TEAM | 03H 56′ 00” |
27 | 33 | SHERCO FACTORY | 03H 56′ 41” | |
28 | 17 |
(ESP) JOAN PEDRERO GARCIA
|
FN SPEED – RIEJU TEAM | 03H 56′ 46” |
29 | 54 |
(FRA) CAMILLE CHAPELIERE
|
TEAM BAINES RALLY | 03H 57′ 48” |
30 | 88 |
(ESP) JOAN BARREDA BORT
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2021 | 03H 58′ 12” |
Featured image: Dakar.com