Dakar 2018 Stage 4 Results

The fourth stage of Dakar 2018, held at San Juan De Marcona, was set to witness some more dune bashing. Proceedings commenced on the beach with a slight twist to the format. The mass start format saw 15 bikes per set, starting at the same time. A special stage of 330km, packed with canyons and steep hill-climbs followed the initial sprint. Riders were then in for one of the longest sandy sections in Dakar. The 100km-long section was the final stage that the riders had to overcome before concluding the day’s racing.

Oriol Mena of Hero MotoSports started the day well by continuing his good form, but later in the stage lost some time in finding a waypoint. He finished the stage at 33rd position. His overall ranking dropped to 24th from 19th after Stage 3. 

A nasty crash in the second half saw CS Santosh slide down to the 98th position. However, he managed to cover 40 positions before finishing the stage at the 56th spot. He still stands at the 56th position in overall rankings. 

Speaking about his day, Santosh said, “We started the stage today on the beach. I knew it was going to be a tough day because I was starting with a lot of riders in front of me. I tried to push myself hard and did all I could and so I managed to cross a lot of riders. Dune section was really long and difficult but I managed that well. Towards the end I had a massive crash because of a rock hidden inside a fesh-fesh, but I am ok and the bike is ok so we live to fight another day.”

TVS Sherco riders had a mixed bag of results after Stage 4. Joan Pedrero finished 17th, rising up from the 20th spot to the 17th in overall standings. His Indian teammate Aravind KP, who managed to finish 44th, dropped to the 33rd position in overall rankings. 

KTM rider and reigning champion, Sam Sunderland, was involved in a nasty crash that forced him out of the competition. Sunderland crashed into a hole and injured his spine. After the crash he pushed on for another 10km, before quitting due to back pain and a loss of sensation in his legs. Unfortunately, he had to be escorted to a medical facility in a helicopter.  

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Stage 4 ended with Van Beveren finishing first, followed by De Soultrait of Yamaha and M Walkner of KTM. With Sam Sunderland out, the first position is now held by Van Beveren of Yamaha, while P Quintanilla of Husqvarna and K Benavides of Honda hold 2nd and 3rd positions respectively. 

The next stage will see the riders set foot in Arequipa where they will face a 30km stretch of sands at Tanaka, followed by another 30km stretch of mountain dune sections. This will be the longest stage yet, with 774km to be covered, including the liaison.