Honda 1-2-3 on Dakar Stage Nine as Brabec extends outright lead

2024 Dakar Rally – Stage Nine
Ha’il > Al Ula

Adrien Van Beveren notched up a second stage victory at the 2024 Dakar Rally overnight, leading home Monster Energy Honda Team-mates Ricky Brabec and Pablo Quintanilla to lock out the top three on Tuesday. Ricky Brabec also extended his lead over Ross Branch in the overall standings.

Heading back west to Al Ula, the location of the start of this year’s event, stage nine was predicted to be difficult but the Monster Energy Honda Team made light work of the swathes of sand and rocky terrain across the 417 km special with a clean sweep of the stage podium.

Despite initial frustration at having to be third off the line for Stage Nine, Van Beveren’s start position didn’t seem to worry him as he quickly dispatched stage opener Kevin Benavides to be first on the road for almost 400 km to the finish. Although having to slow towards the end to find the correct route, his reward was a sizeable chunk in bonuses of over five and a half minutes, which today put him ahead of Brabec who had achieved the best time of the stage.

Adrien Van Beveren – P1

“It was a tough day but a good one as I finally opened almost 400 km of the stage. Kevin (Benavides) was following and he was a good support as there were moments where it was really, really difficult. I tried my best and to be consistent so I’m happy with how the stage went.”

Ricky Brabec played the day to perfection, after keeping his main rival Branch close yesterday, the Californian was on the attack on the rolling dunes to finish behind Van Beveren and stretch his lead overall to seven minutes in what could be the turning point at this year’s Dakar.

Ricky Brabec – P2

“Today was possibly one of my only shots to make a big push and try to make a bit bigger gap than forty or fifty seconds so I gave it my all today. I think tomorrow we’re probably going to have to open but if I can clean up I think we’ll be set free. In the 2020 Dakar I pulled a gap early on and this has definitely been the most stressful race of my life because it’s so close. Anyway, with a few more days to go, let’s keep the hopes up and keep charging.”

Pablo Quintanilla made a return to the stage podium in what was a much better day for the Chilean rider. Although not in the overall reckoning he can now focus on accumulating points for the World Rally-Raid Championship title and help Brabec and Van Beveren when they open the stage tomorrow.

Pablo Quintanilla – P3

“Finally I had a good day without any issues. I was feeling good in the morning so I’m happy. Today was a long stage, the first 100 km was physically demanding with many off-piste sections, camel grass and some dunes with drops. Then after the refuelling the terrain changed a little bit with rocky sections and the navigation wasn’t so easy. My goal now is that the team wins the rally so if I can help then I’ll give my all.”

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Toby Price secured a top-four result on the rough and demanding ninth stage, after heading into the stage in fifth, continuing his consistent performances.

A small mistake cost Price several minutes however it was a common issue across the field thus lessening the impact. Team-mate Kevin Benavides had the challenge of opening the stage but a small mistake early on by the Argintenean stalled his progress momentarily, eventually finishing sixth, behind Ross Branch.

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Toby Price – P4

“Stage nine is done and I’m really happy with how I rode today. The terrain was tricky – there were lots of rocks, but in the sun, it made it hard to see properly and judge what was lying ahead. I made one small mistake on one WPC and lost some time, but other than that, everything went smoothly. That’s one more stage ticked off with three more to go. I’m having fun out there, so everything is good.”

Ross Branch – P5

“It was quite a long and rough day today. I wasn’t fast enough from the get go. I made a few mistakes in the camel grass this morning, couldn’t get on couple of dunes easily, and lost a lot of time eventually. Ricky (Brabec) has got a bit more lead over us now, but it’s not the end of the Rally. We’re here in one piece, the bike’s good and I’m doing well. We’re still in the fight, and I’ll put my all to hammer down tomorrow, and hope for the best outcomes in the next few days.”

Kevin Benavides – P6

“It’s been a tough stage today, not the easiest one to lead out on, but I did an okay job. I made a mistake at kilometre 45 and that meant I lost quite a lot of time and then I was caught by a couple of riders. After I got back on track I really tried to push, and was able to catch up with the two guys ahead before the refueling. From there to the finish, Adrien (Van Beveren) and I opened the whole stage, with both of us taking turns to lead. It was a challenging stage, but I think we did a good job.”

Nacho Cornejo got disorientated on the route before the refuelling point which knocked his podium chances to lose him ten minutes on the stage to Van Beveren. His seventh-place finish has increased the gap to nearly fourteen minutes off Brabec as he’ll hope to capitalise on any mistakes made tomorrow by his fellow competitors.

José Ignacio “Nacho” Cornejo – P7

“It wasn’t a good day for me, I made a big mistake before refuelling and lost a lot of time there. Then I tried to push and stick with Ricky who had caught up with me. That mistake cost me some valuable minutes in the fight for the general rankings, but there are still some days left and I’m going to give my best to the finish. Hopefully, I’ll have a solid stage tomorrow without the mistakes I made today.”

Luciano Benavides continued his run of consistent top-10 stage results, posting the eighth-fastest time in what was one of the fastest timed specials of the race so far, and was able to maintain good pace with minimal mistakes. Rounding out the top-10 behind him were Stefan Svitko and Bradley Cox.

Luciano Benavides – P8

“Stage nine was another tough one for sure. I was at the front with my brother, Kevin, and we made a mistake in the navigation so were lost for a few minutes. After that it was a long day, but definitely the fastest stage of this year’s Dakar so far. I was pushing hard to try and make up time but I was struggling with my hands getting really sore. I’m happy to have made it to the end of the stage though and my result gives me a good starting position for tomorrow.”

The second week at the Dakar hasn’t started quite as well as week one ended for Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing’s Daniel Sanders, but he’s still in the race, and well inside the top-10 overall as the event nears its conclusion.

After a couple of close calls on today’s ninth stage, Chucky wisely backed it down to complete the special safe and sound in 16th.

Daniel Sanders – P16

“Another tough stage done and we’re one day closer to the finish. It was a bit of a rough day. I tried my best but struggled a lot and I had a few close calls early on, too. After that I settled down a bit and cruised on home. I stayed in my comfort zone, didn’t push too hard, and unfortunately lost some time today. But that’s better than not finishing at all. I’m happy to finish another stage, though, especially as today was a really long day on the bike.”

Brabec leads after Stage Nine – Price P6, Sanders P8

Stage Nine has seen Brabec extend his lead over Ross Branch from 42s to over seven-minutes, with Adrien Van Beveren next fastest in the overall trailing the leader by 11m26s, with Cornejo not far behind 13m46 off the leader.

Kevin Benavides (+28m12s) rounds out the top five, followed by Toby Price ( 35m12s) both riders losing time on the leaders in Stage Nine. It was a similar story for Daniel Sanders, who retains eighth overall in the standings, but now trails the leader by almost an hour, that gap expanding from under 40m at the end of the last stage.

2024 Dakar Rally Stage Nine Results

Stage 10 Route

The fight continues heading into stage ten tomorrow on a rocky loop around AlUla. The 371 km special stage will need riders to keep their wits about them as the famous rocky backdrops will look to catch them out with a technical route that could throw them off course.

2024 Dakar Rally Standings after Stage Nine

Dakar Rally 2024 Route Map

2024 Dakar Rally Schedule