Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Kevin Benavidez finished fourth in Round 10 of the 2023 Dakar Rally today to become the provisional leader of the standings. Toby Price finished the day in 19th place but is still third overall just two minutes down while Matthias Wakner had a great day in fifth place on his KTM 450 RALLY.
Riders left the bivouac at 3:30am today to complete the 467km trek that took them to the start of today’s special time trial. Despite the short distance of 114 km, the timed route consisted mainly of hilly dunes, which made navigation difficult and a real test of endurance for all participants.
Kevin Benavidez, the seventh rider on the special stage after his strong performance on stage 9, was immediately in contention for stage victory. With good speed over sandy terrain, the 2021 Dakar winner was just 10 seconds adrift of the leader at kilometer 84. After losing little time in the closing stages, Benavidez dropped to fourth as he crossed the finish line with a minute to go in victory. However, time in the top 10 was close and Kevin’s confident driving propelled him to the front of the rally where he has a minute and a half advantage.
Kevin Benavides: “Today was really short, but really tough physically as it was raced all in the dunes. I started off in seventh position and just tried to keep a nice flow through all the dunes and it felt really good. I did have one crash where I went over the handlebars, but it seems it might have had a positive effect because I only lost about one minute and that means I set of fourth into tomorrow’s stage 11.”
Yesterday, after losing time in the desert due to a navigational error, Matthias Wokner bounced back in style on Stage 10. With the fifth best time in the demanding special stage, Walkner is back in the top 10 overall and wants to climb even higher. the remaining four days of racing.
Matthias Walkner: “I had a good day today. I really like this sort of terrain and was able to make up good time across the dunes. I wasn’t pushing too hard at first because I didn’t want to lose time like I did yesterday, but then towards the end I was able to increase my pace toward the finish. I’m feeling a lot stronger now, and coming in fifth today puts me in a good place for tomorrow’s marathon stage.”
Toby Price was the second driver to take part in today’s special and once again put his skills and experience to good use, choosing to carefully navigate the dunes to minimize costly mistakes. With the leaders’ times very close on the short special, Toby ended the day 19th, just eight minutes behind the leader. This keeps the Australian at the top of the standings, where he now sits in third place.
Toby Price: “Today was a long day – we were up at 2:30am, but then just a short special. I tried to pace myself a little today to make sure I didn’t make any big mistakes and to also get a good start for tomorrow’s longer stage. I dropped down a little in the standings, but didn’t lose too much time, and now hopefully I’m well-placed to attack tomorrow. So far so good.”
Thursday’s stage 11 marks the first half of the Empty Quarter marathon stage, which sees riders spend the night in the desert with no help from their teams. The stage with a total length of 427 kilometers includes 274 kilometers full of dunes.
Provisional Results – 2023 Dakar Rally, Stage 10
1. Ross Branch (BWA), Hero, 1:44:00
2. Adrien Van Beveren (FRA), Honda, 1:44:21
3. Michael Docherty (ZAF), Husqvarna, 1:44:30
4. Kevin Benavides (ARG), KTM, 1:45:00
5. Matthias Walkner (AUT), KTM, 1:45:22
Other KTM
7. Mason Klein (USA), KTM, 1:47:05 +3:05
19. Toby Price (AUS), KTM, 1:52:16
Provisional Standings – 2023 Dakar Rally (after 10 of 14 stages)
1. Kevin Benavides (ARG), KTM, 35:16:06
2. Skyler Howes (USA), Husqvarna, 35:47:35 +1:29
3. Toby Price (AUS), KTM, 35:48:16 +2:10
4. Adrien Van Beveren (FRA), Honda, 35:55:58 +9:52
5. Pablo Quintanilla (CHI), Honda, 36:01:04 +14:58
Other KTM
6. Mason Klein (USA), KTM, 36:01:44 +15:38
10. Matthias Walkner (AUT), KTM, 36:25:55 +39:49