A brutal day at the 2022 Dakar Rally concludes with Danilo Petrucci taking his maiden Dakar Stage victory - a massive step for the MotoGP winner and Dakar Rookie. American Skyler Howes is forced to abandon the race after a hard crash, despite finishing the day inside the top ten. Attrition begins to really affect the field with one more day before the rest day.
The Dakar Rally starts after the rest day.
We've heard that plenty from racers, managers, and more. And it certainly seems to be holding true in 2022's edition of the Dakar. Today on Stage five, we saw our first contender fall and abandon the race with American success story Skyler Howes headed to the hospital right after completing the stage. He reported in to the show with a decent prognosis after a massive crash: concussion, sore heel, no broken bones. But his race is over.
Others crashed as well, two-time stage winner Joan Barreda crashed and injured his shoulder. After finishing, he said he'll wait until the morning to inform the organizers if his race is over. Daniel Sanders seems to have hit the deck again, as well - two days in a row for the fast Australian.
Despite the carnage, an unlikely winner emerges. MotoGP veteran Danilo Petrucci, participating in his first Dakar (maybe his first rally) took the stage win after Toby Price was docked with a six-minute speeding penalty. The win is a milestone as never has a MotoGP winner won a stage of Dakar. Also, he's a true rookie, which puts him in rarified air again.
In today's show we try to keep up with the changing pace of the race results, get an update from Ricky Brabec, hear from race leader Sam Sunderland, get a quote from Ross Branch and dig into what's to come.
Check it out!