Bruno Santos continues to excel in his Dakar Rally debut. The Torres Vedras driver climbed to third place in the general classification for the "Rookies", the first-time drivers in the competition, after successfully completing the most eagerly awaited stage of this 46th edition of the race, the 48-hour journey that ended today in Shubaytah after 626 timed kilometers had been covered in two days.
For the XRAIDS EXPERIENCE rider, the selective sector completed in the dunes of the Empty Quarter, the largest desert in the world, was demanding and tough, particularly due to a mechanical difficulty that arose halfway through the first day. The bike's chain broke and the rider lost more than 1.5 hours to solve the problem.
Despite this setback, Bruno Santos didn't lose heart and managed to set a fast pace that allowed him to recover positions and finish this difficult day, where he spent 9h54m34s, in third place among the "Rookies" and in 20th place in the Rally 2 Ranking. The driver is now 19th overall in this category.
"It was a very tough stage! It was 626 km of pure dunes! Yesterday I lost a lot of time because my bike's chain broke and it took me a while to make the repairs. But, with some help, I was able to continue. It was a shame because I felt like I was riding in the dunes like never before. I'm very pleased to have reached the halfway point of the race. Today we had to take a flight to Riyadh where we'll spend the rest day. Tomorrow is a day to relax and recover a bit," said the rider who finished the sixth stage in 32nd place in the standings.
The motorcycle and quad riders will fly to Riyadh today, where they will enjoy a well-deserved rest day tomorrow. This day will give the teams the opportunity to carry out more in-depth maintenance on their vehicles and the riders can enjoy a relaxing day before the final week of competition.
Automatic translation of the Portuguese version available on www.todoterreno.pt
Source: Bruno Santos's official press release
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