The Folgueroles rider has been hit by this Dakar. Ever since he overturned his car on the fourth day, everything has gone downhill. “It simply came to our notice then. For him more than for me because he has endured with a broken rib [a causa de l’accident]. Our partner Seb [Loeb] has finished second and Orlando [Terranova], fourth, so congratulations. We have learned things and now we have to think about Abu Dhabi, in a few months, the second race of this World Cup “, he said on his social networks.
Nani Roma and Alex Haro finished the Dakar in 52nd place after accumulating 30 hours of penalties due to overturning and mechanical problems that made them lose their fight for the first places of the car general.
The merit of Laia Sanz
The other side of the coin is for Laia Sanz. The driver from Corbera de Llobregat finished his first participation in the toughest race in the world in 23rd position. The Catalan adds a more complete edition and continues with its full staff: 12 participations, 12 times has crossed the finish line.
Adaptation has been costly, as Sanz has admitted, but the lessons learned have been very rewarding and key to being able to think about next year’s edition. “Some days we had a good pace, but we were very conditioned by the first week and the fact of going so far back. If it weren’t for that, we would have ended up higher overall. Despite this, we know we can do better; so we are already thinking about 2023, ”he said after the twelfth and final stage between Bisha and Jeddah. “The goal was to learn and I think we did. We have learned a lot and a thousand things have happened to us from which we have drawn positive elements “, he added.
If Laia Sanz is the personification of joy in this Dakar, Joan Barreda is the personification of sacrifice. A fall between kilometers 265 and 270 caused a fracture in the collarbone of his left shoulder that endangered his continuity in the Dakar. Barrera, however, did not want to add his sixth abandonment in 12 participations in the Dakar, and the Torreblanca rider has taken all the exits to finish an edition that has surely been the most difficult of all the Dakars in which he has participated.
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