Toby Price early leader after first of five timed stages
The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team have got their 2018 FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship campaign off to the perfect start, taking the top three places on the first of five timed stages at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Toby Price took the honours, followed by team-mates Sam Sunderland and Matthias Walkner.
Following Saturday’s demonstration lap of the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi, Sunday’s stage marked the first of five timed specials in the dunes to the south of the city. With no prologue to determine the start order, riders set off according to their final results from the 2017 world championship. Matthias Walkner was third away followed by Sam Sunderland in fifth and Toby Price a little further back, setting off 14th of the 26 riders.
With a total of 418.38km covered on today’s stage, 276.01km were timed special. The first half of the stage proved to be faster and harder on tyres than anticipated and the three KTM riders were forced to swap wheels at the refuelling stop. The following half of the stage was made up of the soft sand characteristic of the area and the trio were able to push much harder and ultimately claim the top three positions on the day.
Not having tested with the rest of the team in Morocco, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge marks the first time back on a KTM 450 RALLY since the Dakar for Toby Price. Starting further down the field, the Australian was able to maximise the advantage and eventually crossed the finish with a time close to three-minutes ahead of team-mate Sunderland.
Toby Price – P1
“The day was really good today. We had a little issue with the fast hard-packed piste at the beginning of the stage, the tyres got really warm and we had to change them at the fuel stop. After that it was just sand and then more sand. The bike performed perfectly, the team have done an excellent job preparing it for me, it’s handling beautifully in the dunes. I’m feeling comfortable even though it’s my first time back on a rally bike since Dakar. I’m looking forward to tomorrow now and seeing what the rest of the rally will bring.”
A small mistake navigating around a herd of camels on the second half of the timed special may have cost Qatar resident Sam Sunderland a little time. But his pace in the dunes is always impressive and the Brit went on to claim a strong runner-up position.
Sam Sunderland – P2
“Today went ok, I am happy with second, just a couple of minutes down on Toby. I did make a mistake this morning with the tyre choice and lost some time at the refuel to change the wheel. I then pushed hard on the second part of the stage but at one point came across a lot of camels that were right on the piste. I went around them, but then lost more time trying to get back on track. We still have another four stages to ride so I’m looking forward to that.”
2018 Dakar Rally winner Matthias Walkner was third away at the beginning of the stage. With only two riders ahead of him to chase down, the Austrian kept to a fast but steady pace doing enough to finish the day third overall and putting him in a good position for Monday’s timed special.
Matthias Walkner – P3
“Today went well for me, especially as I was a little worried that I hadn’t had enough on-bike time since the Dakar. I also hurt my shoulder a little in testing and so didn’t want to risk too much on this first stage. To finish third after setting off near the front is better than I expected and puts me in an ok start position for tomorrow, chasing down Toby and Sam. The rally is quite a tough one as 90% of it is ridden in the sand, so I’ll keep on riding consistently and see where I am at the finish.”
Kevin Benavides – P4
“It was a good stage to warm up in the desert of the Arab Emirates. I think that until the first CP I took a conservative pace and pushed a bit more later on, to be able to reduce the difference. We were ahead and knew that we would lose some time to the other riders coming from behind. Tomorrow it will be our turn to attack, but with a bit more confidence out in the desert.”
Pablo Quintanilla – P5
“It was a really good stage for me today. I had the chance to open the stage all the way from the beginning to the end, and that was a great experience. I managed to get a good pace so nobody was able to catch or pass me during the whole stage. As the first rider to take the start this morning, I knew it would be a great challenge to remain fast in the desert, but I’m really happy I made it happen. I might have lost some time to the day’s winner Toby Price, but this has just been the beginning of this rally and there’s still a long way to go. My goal from now on is to catch the pace of the leading riders and try to push during the next few stages. I am satisfied with the job we did today and tomorrow I will do my best to make up some time in the provisional overall.”
Stage three of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge will cover 519.71km in total of which 281.38km will be timed special stage in the dunes of the United Arab Emirates.
Provisional Results Stage Two – 2018 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge
- PRICE Toby 6 AUS Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM 3:13:00
- SUNDERLAND Sam 5 GBR Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM +2’51
- WALKNER Matthias 3 AUT Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM +7’20
- BENAVIDES Kevin 2 ARG Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +9’36
- QUINTANILLA Pablo 1 CHI Husqvarna Factory Rally Team Husqvarna +10’42
- BRABEC Ricky 11 USA Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +11’55
- GONCALVES Paulo 4 POR Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +17’09
- CORNEJO José Ignacio 14 CHI Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +19’21
- AL BALOOSHI Mohammed 7 UAE Balooshi Racing KTM UAE KTM +19’23
- METGE Michael 12 FRA Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +21’06
