Ross Branch is back in the lead of the Dakar 2024. In the fifth stage, held this Thursday, the Botswana rider set the sixth fastest time, which was enough to overtake José Ignacio Cornejo (Monster Energy Honda) in the standings.
The Hero MotoSports rider reacted to the result in statements published on the team’s social media: ‘Today was good. It was only 118km of sand dunes. Some good dunes, some bad ones, some setbacks – a bit of everything! We are here in one piece and in a good position to start tomorrow,’ he said.
The 48-hour marathon stage is next, and Branch admitted that he doesn’t expect it to be easy: ‘The sixth stage is going to be very interesting, difficult and very tough for the bikes and the riders. It’s going to be a long day, but let’s see how we manage to face the new format.’
