The menu for stage 6 gave the riders and their machines an uninterrupted taste of sand. No villages and not even a river, just plenty of dromedaries from the start in Ha’il, in a splendid off-piste environment with dunes of reasonable size. Riders had to cover a total distance of 830 km travelling from Ha’il to Riyadh – the capital of Saudi Arabia.
As in 2019 in Peru, Ricky Brabec has done an impeccable job in Saudi Arabia to lead the rally at the half-way point by more than 20 minutes. The American has added panache to his consistency, with another stage victory in Riyadh in front of his team-mate Joan Barreda.
Ricky clocked a time of 04H 36′ 28” while his teammate Joan was just + 00H 01′ 34” behind him. The 3rd position was secured by MATTHIAS WALKNER of RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM whose total time was 04H 39′ 13”.
Once again this year, Kevin Benavides held all the cards in the quest to triumph on the Dakar for the first time. The Argentinean started the morning in third place in the general standings and has been ultra-consistent in an edition marked by tricky navigation, achieving four finishes in the top 4 on five stages.
However, it was not the man who came up short just before the rest day, but his machine. The high performance of his Honda was once again let down by its reliability, due to a broken engine forty kilometres before the finish. Following a pre-race injury in 2017, a navigational disaster in 2018 and a heavy penalty in 2019, Benavides is once again out of the reckoning for overall victory.
Bad news for Dave Mcbride of VENDETTARACINGUAE.COM. His front fork failed after 320 km into the stage. Even then, he continued to ride on and after around 34 km more, his bike became unrideable. This was Dave’s exit from Dakar 2020. We wish guys from VENDETTARACINGUAE.COM good luck and we will see them in Dakar 2021.
MOHAMMED BALOOSHI continues to perform with each passing stage. He finished stage 6 at 35th position with a time of 05H 33′ 46”. His teammate ABDULLAH AL SHATTI was even better as he crossed the line at 33rd place.
Stage 7 of Dakar 2020 will take place on 12th January 2020, after one rest day.
For full results, click HERE.
Source – Dakar.com
