The first pilots to reach the end of Stage 4 of the Dakar have already arrived, and the winner (provisionally) for now is José Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Cornejo, completing the day in 2h51m11s.
Today’s stage connected Al Salamiya to Al Hofuf, with the riders facing 613km, of which 299km were a special stage. There, Nacho Cornejo once again outperformed the others and achieved his second victory in the current edition of the competition.
In second place was Ricky Brabec, the Chilean’s teammate at Monster Energy Honda Team, with a difference of 2m59s, and Kevin Benavides (Red Bull KTM) took the last place on the podium, with a 3m18s delay.
Ross Branch (Hero) and Adrien Van Beveren (Honda) closed out the top five of the day.
It’s worth noting Rui Gonçalves (Sherco), who was the best Portuguese rider on track today, finishing in eighth place.
Cornejo’s victory, combined with his greater consistency, also means that the rider has moved up to first place in the overall standings.
Top 10 – Stage 4:
| POS. | N° | EXP. | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME | VARIATION | PENALITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | (CHL) JOSE IGNACIO CORNEJO FLORIMO | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 02H 51′ 11” | |||
| 2 | 9 | (USA) RICKY BRABEC | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 02H 54′ 10” | + 00H 02′ 59” | ||
| 3 | 47 | (ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES | RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 02H 54′ 29” | + 00H 03′ 18” | ||
| 4 | 46 | (BWA) ROSS BRANCH | HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 02H 55′ 37” | + 00H 04′ 26” | ||
| 5 | 42 | (FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 02H 56′ 36” | + 00H 05′ 25” | ||
| 6 | 1 | (ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES | HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING | 02H 58′ 33” | + 00H 07′ 22” | ||
| 7 | 88 | (ESP) JOAN BARREDA BORT | HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 02H 59′ 26” | + 00H 08′ 15” | 00H 01′ 00” | |
| 8 | 19 | (PRT) RUI GONÇALVES | SHERCO RALLY FACTORY | 03H 01′ 02” | + 00H 09′ 51” | ||
| 9 | 10 | (USA) SKYLER HOWES | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 03H 01′ 16” | + 00H 10′ 05” | ||
| 10 | 16 | (FRA) ROMAIN DUMONTIER | TEAM DUMONTIER RACING | 03H 03′ 05” | + 00H 11′ 54” |
Top 10 – Overall ranking:
| 1 | 11 | (CHL) JOSE IGNACIO CORNEJO FLORIMO | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 17H 27′ 13” | |||
| 2 | 46 | (BWA) ROSS BRANCH | HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 17H 28′ 28” | + 00H 01′ 15” | 00H 01′ 00” | |
| 3 | 9 | (USA) RICKY BRABEC | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 17H 32′ 09” | + 00H 04′ 56” | 00H 01′ 00” | |
| 4 | 47 | (ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES | RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 17H 47′ 52” | + 00H 20′ 39” | ||
| 5 | 42 | (FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 17H 49′ 43” | + 00H 22′ 30” | ||
| 6 | 1 | (ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES | HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING | 17H 58′ 24” | + 00H 31′ 11” | ||
| 7 | 7 | (CHL) PABLO QUINTANILLA | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 17H 58′ 57” | + 00H 31′ 44” | 00H 06′ 00” | |
| 8 | 2 | (AUS) TOBY PRICE | RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 18H 02′ 07” | + 00H 34′ 54” | ||
| 9 | 23 | (CZE) MARTIN MICHEK | ORION – MOTO RACING GROUP | 18H 05′ 24” | + 00H 38′ 11” | ||
| 10 | 16 | (FRA) ROMAIN DUMONTIER | TEAM DUMONTIER RACING | 18H 05′ 57” | + 00H 38′ 44” |
