2023 Dakar Rally – Stage 13
Shaybah – Al-Hofuf
Images by Rally Zone
The penultimate stage of the 2023 Dakar Rally from Shaybah and Al-Hofuf featured a long 520 km liaison, with shorter 153 km special section, with riders surfing the dunes for the last time, heading to the beach tomorrow. Toby Price retained his overall lead in the rankings once the results were collated, from hard charging teammate and stage winner Kevin Benavides, with the Aussie’s lead – previously over Skyler Howes – narrowing.
Despite a small crash and a navigational error, Toby Price finished in fifth, but with Benavides now moving into second overall, a mere 12 seconds behind, the race to the finish line in Dammam on Sunday’s final stage will be intense. As per the Dakar Rally rules, riders will set off in reverse order to the general standings tomorrow in a 153 km sprint, meaning Kevin will be second-to-last away, followed by Toby.
Toby Price – P5
“It’s been a hectic day out there today. I caught the guys in front at about km 90 and thought to myself, if I want to win this race, I have to be out front and capture that bonus a little bit. I had a small crash where I was focused on the top of one dune, lost the front, and fell over. Then around km 130 we just went slightly too far right and lost a little time getting back on course. I really pushed hard all day, with the goal to still be in the lead going into the final day. I managed to do that, so I’m pleased, but it’s still incredibly tight at the top. Tomorrow really is going to be a race to the finish line, but I’ll give it all I have and see where we end up.”
Dakar also saw Daniel Sanders once again help to open the special following his strong runner-up finish yesterday, which the challenges that ensue, and finished the day in 11th, retaining seventh overall and extending his lead over eighth, but losing time on the leaders.
Daniel Sanders – P11
“It was a pretty tricky but enjoyable day up front today. The dunes were really soft which made it hard to maintain a fast pace while trying to navigate, and between the waypoints there were some big gaps, which added to the difficulty. But I pushed on the best I could to not lose too much time and I think I did a pretty good job. There were definitely a few close calls out there but that’s all part of the fun of riding through the dunes!”
Kevin Benavides endured a tough stint in the desert, setting off fifth, the 2021 Dakar winner knew the penultimate stage of the event would offer the best chance to make up ground on teammate, rival, and overall rally leader Toby Price. However, at around 55 km into the special, Kevin reached Matthias Walkner who had crashed.
Staying with his fellow Red Bull KTM racer until the medical team arrived cost Benavides around 23 minutes. After rejoining the race Kevin pushed hard for the finish, making up good time in the process. After having the lost minutes returned to him, Benavides topped the stage by a tight 27 seconds – enough to provisionally move him up into second in the overall standings.
Kevin Benavides – P1
“It’s always a difficult day when you see someone has had a crash, and it’s worse when it’s your teammate. I stayed with Matthias until help arrived and although he was in some pain, he then told me to carry on. I pushed hard for the rest of the stage, but it’s tricky to focus after seeing something like that. To win the stage is amazing, and to be second overall and so close to Toby is even more of a surprise. With one day left all I can do is try my best and the results will be decided at the finish line.”
Michael Docherty was second, followed by Luciano Benavides, who was initially fastest across the finish line, but a one-minute penalty dropped the number 77 to second, which was then corrected to third place after Luciano’s brother Kevin was rewarded time lost for assisting a fallen rider, followed by Adrien Van Beveren.
Luciano Benavides – P3
“The stage was good – around 150 km of dunes. I had a small crash near the beginning, possibly from pushing a little too hard. But after that, I found my rhythm and was able to push again. Midway through the stage I saw Matthias (Walkner) on the ground with the helicopter. Obviously, I hope everything is ok with him and wish him a speedy recovery. After that, I carried on to the finish and think I did a good job. It wasn’t quite enough to win the stage, but I’m happy with how I rode.”
Adrien Van Beveren – P4
“I pushed a lot at the beginning and then I jumped really high in a dune and that was like a joker. It was kind of scary. I was trying to go fast but safe at the same time but that was not easy, due to the many drops in the dunes. Overall we are in the same position. I think this is my best Dakar, with a very solid performance. There is still one more day to go so let’s fight until the end.”
Toby Price raced to fifth, ahead of Romain Dumontier, while Skyler Howes was the sixth rider through the gate for the morning and maintained a strong pace to the finish, despite a couple of errors along the way, finishing seventh, two-seconds clear of Pablo Quintanilla.
Skyler Howes – P7
“Well, I definitely gave my all today – I pushed right from the start as hard as I could. When I saw that Walkner had crashed, it affected my focus a little bit. There were some really big dunes today, I had big jumps off the top of them myself, too. That was a bit of a deciding factor, I really wanted to push and try and get the win, but I want to make sure that I can complete the race as well. I missed one waypoint later on, and that meant circling around to pick it up, so I lost a little bit of time there. I’m still in the fight for the win, and I have to be super happy with how this race as gone up to this point. I can never look back and say I didn’t try my best. I’m looking forward to tomorrow, it’s going to be a short but fast stage with little scope to make up time I think, so the goal is to get my Husqvarna to the finish line in one piece and hopefully in a good position.”
Pablo Quintanilla – P8
“This was a quite fun stage to ride, with many dunes. I was riding with a good rhythm from the beginning and overall it was a good stage. One more day to go and I know I gave everything in each stage, so that is the way I plan to keep until the last km.”
Tosha Shcareina and Ross Branch rounded out the top 10 for the day, followed by Sanders, then Sebastian Buhler, Franco Caimi and Jose Cornejo, with Jacob Argubright 15th.
José Ignacio Cornejo – P14
“I knew this was going to be a difficult day, because I had to open the stage. We lost some time like normal, I did the best I could so it was not so bad. I was feeling good and I am glad all my teammates could also return safely to the bivouac. Now let’s continue and give all we can in the last stage.”
Matthias Walkner came into stage 13 eager to impress once again. Unfortunately, a crash at the km 55 mark brought an end to his stage and his rally. The Austrian suffered trauma to his lower back and has been airlifted to hospital in Dammam for further checks.
Rankings after Dakar Stage 13
2021 Dakar champion Kevin Benavides is only 12 seconds behind Australian Toby Price with one stage to go, something that has never happened before in the Dakar. At this stage of the race in 2014, Peterhansel led Roma by a comparatively comfortable 26 seconds. The previous record in the motorbike category had been set not too long ago. In 2019, Pablo Quintanilla started 1′02″ behind… Toby Price himself.
The Australian romped to victory in Lima, taking his second title after his success in 2016. To add injury to insult, the Chilean, riding a Husqvarna, ended up sore after he pancaked into the ground from a dune jump. Barring team orders in the Austrian clan, a 153 km sprint will unfold tomorrow, perhaps leading to the narrowest margin of victory in the history of the Dakar.
Behind the leading KTM duo is Skyler Howes, 1m31s off the lead, and 14-minutes clear of fourth placed Adrien Van Beveren, offering some breathing room for the top three.
Pablo Quintanilla and Luciano Benavides are 15m59s and 18m29s off the lead, followed by Daniel Sanders in seventh, now 22m34s off leading pace.
Jose Cornejo, Lorenzo Santolino and Franco Caimi complete the top-10 overall.
Stage 14 Route (Final)
The last stage of this year’s Dakar Rally will complete the trip around the red sea, leading the caravan to the shores of the Arabian Gulf in Dammam. There will be a liaison of 270 km from Al-Hofuf and a special section 136 km long – an unusually fast beach section before reaching the final podium ceremony that celebrates all finishers of this great adventure. Tomorrow there will be a reverse start, meaning the slowest will open and the top contenders close the stage.
Stage 13 Highlights Video
2023 Dakar Rally Stage 13 Results (Provisional)
| Pos | Rider/Nat. | Time/Gap |
| 1 | (ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES | 02H 21′ 47” |
| 2 | (ZAF) MICHAEL DOCHERTY | + 00H 00′ 27” |
| 3 | (ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES | + 00H 00′ 57” |
| 4 | (FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN | + 00H 02′ 05” |
| 5 | (AUS) TOBY PRICE | + 00H 02′ 28” |
| 6 | (FRA) ROMAIN DUMONTIER | + 00H 02′ 32” |
| 7 | (USA) SKYLER HOWES | + 00H 03′ 31” |
| 8 | (CHL) PABLO QUINTANILLA | + 00H 03′ 33” |
| 9 | (ESP) TOSHA SCHAREINA | + 00H 04′ 06” |
| 10 | (BWA) ROSS BRANCH | + 00H 04′ 51” |
| 11 | (AUS) DANIEL SANDERS | + 00H 04′ 59” |
| 12 | (DEU) SEBASTIAN BÜHLER | + 00H 05′ 07” |
| 13 | (ARG) FRANCO CAIMI | + 00H 07′ 39” |
| 14 | (CHL) JOSE IGNACIO CORNEJO FLORIMO | + 00H 07′ 42” |
| 15 | (USA) JACOB ARGUBRIGHT | + 00H 08′ 19” |
2023 Dakar Rally Overall After Stage 13 (Provisional)
| Pos | Rider/Nat. | Time/Gap |
| 1 | (AUS) TOBY PRICE | 43H 11′ 51” |
| 2 | (ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES | + 00H 00′ 12” |
| 3 | (USA) SKYLER HOWES | + 00H 01′ 31” |
| 4 | (FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN | + 00H 15′ 51” |
| 5 | (CHL) PABLO QUINTANILLA | + 00H 15′ 59” |
| 6 | (ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES | + 00H 18′ 29” |
| 7 | (AUS) DANIEL SANDERS | + 00H 22′ 34” |
| 8 | (CHL) JOSE IGNACIO CORNEJO FLORIMO | + 00H 28′ 28” |
| 9 | (ESP) LORENZO SANTOLINO | + 01H 10′ 28” |
| 10 | (ARG) FRANCO CAIMI | + 01H 30′ 12” |
| 11 | (CZE) MARTIN MICHEK | + 01H 35′ 09” |
| 12 | (SVK) STEFAN SVITKO | + 01H 44′ 21” |
| 13 | (ESP) TOSHA SCHAREINA | + 01H 49′ 11” |
| 14 | (FRA) ROMAIN DUMONTIER | + 01H 56′ 32” |
| 15 | (ITA) PAOLO LUCCI | + 02H 26′ 38” |
2023 Dakar Rally Schedule
| Stage | Date | Start and Finish | Total | Special |
| REST | January 9, 2023 | RIYADH | |
| STAGE 14 | January 15, 2023 | AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM | 414 km | 136 km |
