Honda’s Joan Barreda Bort
KTM’s Marc Coma
KTM’s Ruben Faria
KTM’s Jordi Viladoms
2015 Dakar Rally Stage 4 Results
Since winning stage two of 2015 Dakar Rally in South America, Team HRC Honda’s Joan Barreda Bort has displayed nothing but skill.
The Honda CRF450 Rally pilot took a demanding lead after winning stage two, and retained the overall top spot after finishing third in stage three. Though much pressure was presented by four-time Dakar Rally winner Marc Coma Wednesday during stage four that took riders 565 miles from the rocky Chilecito, Argentina, to the sand dunes of Copiapo, Chile, Barreda’s mission to win his first Dakar Rally continued.
Barreda presented another impressive performance, finishing stage four and its 196-mile special in first after a late surge. He battled fellow countryman Coma for most of the day, but found something extra towards the final moments, eventually beating his rival by 1:59 minutes. Taking third in stage four was KTM’s Pablo Quintanilla, the Chilean who finished 2:49 minutes behind.
During stage four, riders headed to ascending landscapes once again, competing in the San Francisco pass over the Andes Mountains in Argentina, which has an altitude of 4800 meters. The riders then entered the sand dunes of Chile; throughout the day, temps ranged from 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, presenting challenges mostly unknown to others in the world of off-road racing.
Due to Barreda’s performances – 4th (stage one), 1st (stage two), 3rd (stage 3), 1st (stage 4) – the Honda CRF450 Rally pilot now holds a 12:49-minute lead over Coma in the overall standings.
Speaking after the stage, Barreda Bort says “I’m really pleased with today. It was a really fast special and we had to really concentrate hard. I looked up ahead and when I saw it was Marc and not Walker, I really floored it to not let him get away. Everything has worked out really well up until now. To keep up with Marc’s pace and even to take time off him is not easy. But we will continue to try and stay comfortably ahead and not take any chances.”
As for Coma, the Red Bull KTM 450 Rally pilot once again impressed, but is still making up the time he lost due to tire damage in stage two.
“This was an important day for me because it would have been easy to lose time in the last 100 km of deep sand and big dunes. I opened the road all day and I tried to make a high rhythm and to push to the maximum. I’m happy to arrive here with no mistakes and everything is getting better for me. We are now in the Atacama and I feel comfortable here,” Coma says.
In the overall standings, Honda’s Paolo Gonclaves is third. The Portuguese Honda CRF450 pilot finished 12th in stage four, 14:56 minutes behind Barreda. Gonclaves, who chases his first Dakar win, is 20:20 minutes behind Barreda after four of 13 stages.
Speaking after stage four, Gonclaves says “Today was a really hard day for me. I got lost at kilometer 11, and then, after I had found my way back, I made another mistake at kilometer 124. I dropped a lot of time. When I arrived at refueling, I realized that I was twenty minutes behind. After that I pushed hard and made up a bit of lost time. I managed to keep in the top group in the rally. Tomorrow I’ll try and get a better result.”
Finishing fourth Wednesday, 10:44 minutes behind Barreda, was Coma’s teammate Jordi Viladoms, who is fifth overall. Viladoms was followed in stage four 11 seconds back by fellow KTM pilot Ruben Faria, who remains fourth overall 23:05 seconds behind.
Rounding out the top 10 in stage four were Honda’s Javier Pizzolito, Sherco’s Alain Duclos, Honda’s Laia Sanz – the top women Dakar rider so far in 2015 – KTm’s Svitko and Yamaha’s Michael Metge.
Unfortunately, the progress in stage four was marred by tragedy. During Tuesday’s stage three, Polis rider Michael Hernik perished; the official reason has yet to be reported.
Thursday’s stage five takes riders 433 miles through the Atacama Desert in Chile from Capiapo to Antofagasta with 285 of those miles timed.
2015 Dakar Rally Stage 4 Motorcycle Results:
2015 Dakar Rally Overall General Standings after four of 13 stages:
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