Kevin Benavides was the winner of the third stage of the Dakar 2024. The rider had the third fastest time, but with the penalties imposed on Pablo Quintanilla (Monster Energy Honda) and Joan Barreda (Hero MotoSports) ahead of him, he was promoted to victory.
The Red Bull KTM rider surpassed Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy Honda) by 1m11s, although the American was also penalized. In the overall standings, he is sixth, 20m32s behind the leader, Ross Branch (Hero MotoSports).
In statements to the official Dakar website, Benavides commented on Monday’s stage: ‘Today I started very focused on my navigation. Anyway, I had many tracks ahead, but I was very focused on making my own path. The stage was tough, very long, and it was a tough day. But I am happy with the feeling. I think I did a good job, and it’s another day. We are now in this kind of marathon, now it’s the assistance time, so we are preparing everything to be ready for tomorrow‘.
