Santolino sees the top five in the Dakar as doable: “The important thing is to have few mistakes”

Lorenzo Santolinofacing his seventh participation in the Dakar rally, it looks possible to finish in the top five for the first time in the motorcycle categorywhere he believes it is important to “have few mistakes”, be regular and “not have days that are too stressful”.

The pilot from Salamanca, 37 years old, The goal is set to surpass the sixth place it achieved in 2021 in the examwhich will begin on January 3, after stepping up its preparations in recent months behind the Sherco TVS Rally Factory.

“I arrived at a good time. Has the potential to be in the top five. I hope bad luck doesn’t accompany me. The Dakar is a very long race where the most important thing is to have few mistakes and not to have days that burden you too much with big losses or strong falls,” assured the Castilian-Leonese rider in the statements in EFE.

He admits that it is “unrealistic” to imagine victory in a category as competitive as the motorcycle category, but it is necessary to enter the top five, where he sees it necessary “to always be close to the head, to be quite regular and without moments in those who waste too much time.

In his opinion, “the ups and downs are harmful” and the key is not to fall “to the extreme of doing one second and then fifteen.”. “This is what happens when you enter the dynamic of wanting to win the stages,” added Santolino, with the support of Pont Grup.

The pilot from Salamanca believes that the first week of competition “will be more decisive” than the second because the race starts in a 48-hour period and the marathon is included in the first few days.

“If you leave yourself too many minutes in the beginning, it will be difficult to come back. You have to try to be as regular as possible“, said Santolino, where luck “is sought throughout the year with preliminary preparation in all areas of the race.”