It was the widely held belief in the bivouac this morning that today’s stage would be the moment that the 2012 Dakar Rally really shifted up through the gears. With a marathon 300km timed special stage between Santa Rosa and San Rafael over testing terrain the desert classic got into full swing.
Stage Two – Santa Rosa de la Pampa to San Rafael
The mood of anticipation at the start was tinged with sadness following yesterday’s death of Argentinian biker Jorge Andres Martínez Boero. The Dakar Rally is without doubt one of motorsport’s most dangerous pursuits, further serious incidents involving Frenchmen Bruno da Costa and Sebastian Coue today once again proved that. Both bikers ended the day in hospital after stage two demonstrated the dangers that exist in the desert.
One biker who did manage to safely complete the stage was reigning champion Marc Coma. A stage win for Marc saw him leapfrog Chaleco Lopez and top the overall leaderboard.
“Today’s stage came in two different parts. The first half was at full speed and that made it tough for me to catch Chaleco. The second part of the stage was over dunes and that caused things to become much more technical. I managed to take the lead and maintain a steady pace. Navigation becomes a tricky issue when you’re leading the pack so I’m glad I didn’t get lost. I’m happy with how the Dakar has started for me this year even if there is still a long way to go.” – Marc Coma
'I’m happy with how the Dakar has started for me this year' – Marc Coma
In close contact with Marc throughout the stage was his support rider Joan Pedrero. If Marc is to win his fourth Dakar title he needs Joan to be on top form and his team mate seems happy to keep up the pace.
“Today I started with the idea of pushing a little more and see what kind of response I got from my riding ability as well as the bike. Let me tell the bike is working like a dream and I even managed to impress myself a little as well. I was feeling confident out there, even if the stage had lots of obstacles. It was a fun stage, a real Dakar stage!” – Joan Pedrero.
While Marc and Chaleco swapped places at the top of the leaderboard another familiar face returned to the podium places. Three-time Dakar champion Cyril Despres put himself in third place with an extremely solid ride.
Over in the car race nobody could deal with the raw speed of the Hummers belonging to Robby Gordon and Nasser Al-Attiyah. After some problems on day one Nasser recaptured the skills that made him the 2011 Dakar champion to win stage two. Despite a great day in the Hummer camp it’s the BMW X-Raid Mini of Stephane Peterhansel that tops the leaderboard with Giniel de Villiers also handily placed.
The Kamaz Team are rumbling into life over in the truck category with Eduard Nikolaev in cab #500 now breathing down the neck of race leader Gerard de Rooij.
Despite the stack of South Americans in the quad race it was the Polish contingent that dominated the race with Lukasz Laskawiec bagging a stage win on day two of the 2012 Dakar Rally.
Dakar Digit: 44
Bruno da Costa and bike #44 will play no further part in the 2012 Dakar Rally after the Frenchman crashed into a cow on the second stage. Bruno was airlifted to hospital where he was diagnosed with a fractured spine. The biker remains in a conscious state and was able to speak to his wife on the phone while doctors in Mendoza continue their medical assessment.
Cyril Despres © Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Want more?
- Check out Marc Coma's profile page
- Visit redbull.com's Dakar 2012 event page
- More Red Bull motor sports
- Dakar 2012: Ones to Watch | Bikes
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