get-go . Here , I think me and Ross spent three days with a couple of seconds difference . It was a tight race for all of us . “ I think between first and third there are 11 minutes or something , whatever Adrien got , but it ’ s been a tight race and ten minutes is not a big gap here on the rally . I had two good days , two opportunities to make a good push , but also Stage 11 was a scare factor for me because I knew Ross was starting behind me , 18 minutes behind , and if he caught me it would be over . Stage 11 was hard but I stayed focused , got to the finishing line and didn ’ t lose too much time , so I ’ m really happy with this and I ’ m really happy for the team . I ’ m happy for all of us , we did an excellent job all of the two weeks . I think number 9 will be my lucky number from now on .”
HERO ’ S ROSS BRANCH PUSHED HARD With long-time Dakar hopeful and Honda teammate Adrien van Beveren hot on his heels , the only fly in the ointment for a Honda 1-2 was Botswanan rider Ross Branch on his Hero . The ‘ Kalahari Ferrari ’ finished the Rally in second place , a well-deserved reward for his consistent performance over the 12 stages saw him trading places between first and second spots in the overall rankings throughout the Rally . “ Finally finished the Dakar !” exclaimed a jubilant Branch , “ It was a really tough Dakar 2024 , and I ’ m so thrilled to be here ! Finishing on the podium was always the goal , and today it ’ s a dream come true . I ’ m really over the moon to achieve this goal for Hero . And a big thank you to the team for developing a highly competitive machine , for the sleepless three weeks here , and for everything they ’ ve sacrificed to reach this point . I ’ m really proud of my team . We ’ ve got some more work to do to be on the next step , so we ’ ll look forward to that in the next year .”
KTM OUT OF THE TOP THREE For reigning champions KTM , it was a Rally to forget with Austrian ace Mattias Walkner sidelined before the rally even commenced with a leg injury . This left it to reigning champion , Argentinian Kevin Benevides and teammate Australian
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