Yamaha Factory Racing’s Cyril Despres enjoyed another day battling at the front of the lead group of riders today on stage 11 of the 2014 Dakar Rally. The exhausting ride covered 605km of timed special stage featuring every kind of terrain, from dunes to rios. The five-time Dakar winner opened the piste for 400km before dropping slightly to finish just 2mins 31secs behind Marc Coma in first. The result keeps Despres in sixth in the standings, now 23mins 22secs from third.
Teammate Olivier Pain was also on form, completing the 11th special stage in third position behind Despres, 5mins 28secs from the front. The result moves the Frenchman closer to a possible Dakar podium. Sitting in fourth in the overall standings he is now just 13mins 44secs from third.
The last of Yamaha’s Factory Racing riders, Michael Metge, had a better day than yesterday, staying on the course and avoiding any navigational errors to finish the special in 11th and keep 13th overall in the standings.
A little further back from the factory riders the Yamaha’s WR450 is delivering impressive results in the hands of Venezuelan rider Nicolas Vagnoni. With just two stages remaining, Vagnoni continues to lead the G2 marathon class.
Communication Yamaha Factory Racing - www.yamaha-racing.com