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Ricky Brabec, the Yankee star who has ended KTM's 19-year hegemony in the Dakar
Ricky Brabec, the Yankee star who has ended KTM's 19-year hegemony in the Dakar

Video: Ricky Brabec, the Yankee star who has ended KTM's 19-year hegemony in the Dakar

Video: Ricky Brabec, the Yankee star who has ended KTM's 19-year hegemony in the Dakar
Video: Conquering the Impossible: The Ricky Brabec Story 2024, March
Anonim

It flew through the air. KTM's hegemony in the Dakar rally has suddenly disappeared in this 2020 edition. A young American star, Ricky Brabec, has destroyed the KTM empire in the toughest raid in the world and inaugurate a new stage. That of the domain of Honda, which has regained the scepter 31 years later.

You had to go back to 1989 and Gilles Lalay to find Honda's latest victory on the Dakar. Since then, HRC had done their best to win the raid back, but KTM was intractable. Until today. until Ricky Brabec, with a perfect Dakar, has become the first American to win this rally.

Brabec is already the leader of Honda after giving them the first win in 31 years

Brabec Dakar 2020
Brabec Dakar 2020

Brabec's victory is a double surprise. Externally and internally. On the one hand, it breaks KTM's streak of 19 wins in a row, but it is that It also consolidates itself as the leader of Honda. If last year it already gave very serious signs of speed, this year Brabec has uncovered the jar of essences.

The American has removed the thorn of the tasteless of 2019, when he had to retire leading the general classification due to an engine breakdown. At that time it seemed that the great opportunity for Brabec had disappeared, but in 2020 it has shown that its thing is not going to be a one-day flower, but that it wants to inaugurate a new hegemony.

Hrc Dakar 2020
Hrc Dakar 2020

Brabec has also remained with the predominant position within Honda, where he has definitely displaced Joan Barreda. The Valencian has completed a terrible Dakar, it is true that with the justification of the physical problems that have weighed down from the first stages.

But still, the feeling is that the HRC is definitely the Brabec team and now Barreda will have less support to pursue his great dream, to win the Dakar. So far this year he finished seventh overall and still hasn't even made it to the final podium of the rally. His best result remains in fifth place in 2017.

Ricky Brabec Dakar 2020 5
Ricky Brabec Dakar 2020 5

In addition, the triumph of Brabec revitalizes the Dakar in the United States. The Honda rider is the first Yankee to win the toughest rally in the world. An American has never won the Dakar in any category, but this year we have two. Brabec in motorcycles is joined by Casey Currie in SSV. Good for the Dakar.

And it is that the Dakar of Brabec has been pluperfect. Without any failure, without getting lost even once. His speed has been fantastic, but his navigational ability has made a difference. And he's only 28 years oldGeneration of 1991. There is a lot of rope ahead of a rider who is Honda's present and future in raids.

Not only was it Honda, KTM was also overtaken by Husqvarna

Toby Price Dakar 2020
Toby Price Dakar 2020

If Brabec is the face of the Dakar, there can be no other cross than KTM. Suddenly everything that could go wrong for the Austrian brand has gone wrong. Sam Sunderland was knocked out at the first change when he was doing a rather stumbled Dakar. Situation similar to that of Matthias Walkner.

The 2018 champion has been able to reach the finish line, but he accumulated too much delay in the early stages that he was left out of the game. Usually, Walkner has been seen with bad feelings throughout the Dakar, beyond some specific flash of his talent. Without Sunderland and Walkner, KTM was left with Toby Price.

Quintanilla Dakar 2020
Quintanilla Dakar 2020

The Australian giant, two-time Dakar champion in 2016 and 2019, has tried everything, but to no avail. Brabec was untouchable in this rally and In addition, Price had to experience firsthand the great misfortune of this Dakar, the death of Paulo Gonçalves. And it is not an easy thing to assume that a friend dies in your arms.

KTM has not only lost, it has lost a lot and well. They have only won two stages, the inaugural and the fifth, and both with Toby Price. Not only has Honda beat KTM, but so has Husqvarna, a brand partly dependent on the Austrians but that has led Pablo Quintanilla to second place.

Laia Sanz Dakar 2020
Laia Sanz Dakar 2020

The Chilean was one of the great surprises of the Dakar. Not because we did not know the talent of Quintanilla, but because no one was counting on Husqvarna in a Dakar in which everyone expected the duel between KTM and Honda. Quintanilla remains at the gates of a victory with which he could not even dream given the brilliance of Brabec.

Otherwise, a pity that we were so soon without the Yamaha in competition. Adrien Van Beveren and Xavier De Soultrait left the rally in the first week due to injuries, so we had to settle for a Franco Caimi who saved the honor of the tuning fork brand by being ninth.

Goncalves Dakar 2020
Goncalves Dakar 2020

Sweeping for home, there are two Spaniards whose performances are worth noting. The first Jaume Betriu, who in his first Dakar has slipped into the top fifteen of the general classification and aims in many ways. And then the immeasurable Laia Sanz, who has managed to finish her tenth consecutive Dakar. Ten participations and ten rallies finished for her. Impressive.

And before finishing the review of the Dakar it is impossible to forget the two worst news of the rally. First the terrible death of Paulo Gonçalves, a pilot admired by all motorcycle lovers who left their lives in the dunes of Saudi Arabia. And more recently the accident of Edwin Straver, who is still fighting for his life in a hospital in Riyadh. Until I get out of there, the 2020 Dakar will not be over.

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