There are still four days before the end of the 46th Dakar Rally and Isidre Esteve does not hesitate to describe as “amazing” the competitive tone of Repsol Toyota Rally Team, despite losing the chances of a position in the general classification at the level of his performance on the track, after the odyssey experienced by the whole team in the 48h time trial, four days ago. In the eighth stage, which this Monday ran between Al Duwadimi and Ha’il, the driver from Ilerda and his co-driver Txema Villalobos again ran well, showing again that, under normal conditions, they are at the level of the best T1+ mounts.
The special day has a total of 458 kilometers, but includes an asphalt neutralization of 179 kilometers. So, in reality the day is divided into two parts, of 165 and 114 timed kilometers, respectively, although there is a single overall result. The two halves of the chrono are like two sides of the same coin for the Toyota Hilux T1+ with the colors of Repsol, MGS Seguros, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Spain and KH-7.
“The first part was very nice, with sandy tracks, dunes (some very soft), and some more complicated areas. I was very happy, because there was no dust when overtaking other cars, so everything went super well,” explains the pilot from Oliana (Lleida)who started 32nd in the starting order.
On the other hand, the second part of the special is quite the opposite. “A drama,” summed up Esteve. “The last 100 kilometers is a hard track, with stones and a lot of dust. Thirty seconds ahead of us, another car leaves at a slower speed. We have reached and we have not crossed the end yet, because of the dust and rocks. There were times when I had to brake on the straights; In the end, on the rocks, I couldn’t even see the track. I had to calm down a bit. In this second part we lost a lot of time, but the overall balance is positive,” he added.
In fact, if not for this, the Repsol Toyota Rally Team It may have broken into the Top 20 of the day. After 3 hours, 44 minutes and 50 seconds of competition, he was ranked 34th (20th in T1+), 27 and a half minutes from the lead. Ten minutes less was enough for Esteve and Villalobos to finish 17th overall and sign their best partial result in this edition.
That is why Isidre Esteve maintains maximum motivation: “We are happy because the car is working well and we are back in the race. Not only us, but also the help, our mechanics, who hardly slept during the break to prepare the car and finished tuning it yesterday. We are highly encouraged for the rest of the race. It’s four days that will be long and complicated, but they catch us at a time when we have a lot of confidence in the car and a lot of desire.
Arriving at the Ha’il bivouac, the Spanish team received the news of the death of novice motorcycle rider Carles Falcón, who had a serious accident in the second stage: “We are all saddened. A big hug to your family and friends. “This race is sometimes very cruel.”
The Dakar continues, and this Tuesday it will travel from Ha’il in Al-Ula, the millennial town where it started about a week and a half ago. The scheduled kilometers will be 436, half of which is sand, a good part on tracks and also sand and rocks.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
