BIKES News from stage 14 ... unfolded 19.01.2013: DAKAR RALLY 2013 Argentina/Chile -stage 14 08:59 - bike 007 - Finish 1: Chaleco wins

DAKAR RALLY 2013

Argentina/Chile -stage 14




13:16 - bike
Finish 2: Top 5

Francisco López was the fastest rider on today's course, beating Ruben Faria by 29", Joan Barreda by 37", Hélder Rodrigues by 53" and Juan Pedrero García by 1'25".

Nevertheless, the penalties handed down to Chaleco and Juan Pedrero García for changing their engines yesterday offer the stage win on a platter to Ruben Faria.




12:50 - bike
001 - Finish: High five for Despres!


The 2013 edition came to an end with Cyril Despres taking his fifth Dakar win. Ruben Faria finished second at 10'43", followed by Francisco López at 18'48" and Ivan Jakes at 23'54".


Juan Pedrero García was fifth at 55'29", ahead of sixth-placed Olivier Pain.


12:37 - bike
007 - Chaleco's penalty comes into effect

There's a reason why Chaleco is so far behind the leaders in today's Scratch classification: the 15-minute penalty set out in the rules for changing his engine has come into effect.


12:35 - bike
005 - Finish 2: One for Barreda?

Joan Barreda has posted the best time so far for the last section, whose route was changed earlier. He clocked a cumulative time of 1 h 43'14" for today's two sections. 16" behind lies Hélder Rodrigues, with Paulo Gonçalves at 2'24" and Cyril Despres at 3'50".

Francisco López got lost in this sector and conceded 14'23".

12:15 - bike
007 - Start 2: Chaleco at sixes and sevens

Francisco López's got lost in the second part of the special, 11 km long. This short section could very well see the Chilean rider lose third place to Ivan Jakes.

09:19 - bike
Finish 1: Faria and Barreda on the virtual podium

At the moment, Ruben Faria holds the second best time at the finish of the first part of the special, 32" behind Francisco López.

Joan Barreda is third, 8" behind the Portuguese rider. Frans Verhoeven, who was in the Top 3 at the previous checkpoints, has yet to finish.




09:10 - bike
007 - Chaleco takes the special, but...

Francisco López had to change his engine yesterday evening, resulting in a 15-minute penalty effective as of the end of today's stage.


This means the Chilean is now fighting for the bottom step of the podium of the 2013 Dakar. His main rival is Ivan Jakes.




08:59 - bike
007 - Finish 1: Chaleco wins

Francisco López takes the penultimate special of the 2013 Dakar ahead of Spain's Joan Barreda, who lies in a provisional second place, 1'05" back. Cyril Despres is third at 2'20", followed by Paulo Gonçalves at 3'05". But we're waiting for some of the protagonists of today's special to finish in order to confirm this classification.




08:43 - bike
Km 86: Waiting for Verhoeven and Faria...

No significant changes from the situation at the first checkpoint: Joan Barreda (+41") is second, followed by Juan Pedrero García (+46") and Hélder Rodrigues (+1'19"). But we're waiting for Frans Verhoeven and Ruben Faria, who posted the second and third best times earlier.



08:38 - bike
007 - Chaleco still in charge after 86 km

The Chilean rider has probably made a point of winning the penultimate stage in front of his home crowds and is leading Cyril Despres by 1'54". These two men are opening the road, so we're still waiting for the other riders.




08:20 - bike
015 - Verhoeven even closer to Chaleco

It's now Frans Verhoeven's turn to take second place, 13 seconds down on the reference.



08:17 - bike
011 - Faria second after 41 km

Cyril Despres' lieutenant has clocked the second best time for the first part of the special, a mere 25" behind leader Chaleco.



08:04 - bike
Km 41: Barreda and García hot on López's heels

Chaleco still holds the best time for the first 41 km, followed by Joan Barreda (+31") in second place and Juan Pedrero García (+33") in third. Hélder Rodrigues (+53") has just toppled Cyril Despres from fourth place




07:57 - bike
007 - Chaleco with a cutlass between his teeth

Francisco López is leading today's special ahead of Cyril Despres, with a time of 29'55" for the first 41 km. Just before the halfway point, the Frenchman is 1'04" down, but his overall lead still looks safe.



07:22 - bike
007 - López dashes to Santiago

Francisco López started the special at 9:15 am. 346 kilometres await, with a first timed section of 111 km. We'll keep an eye on the gaps between him and his main rival Cyril Despres.



07:09
The motorcycles start the special at 9:15 local time

The first motorcycle started at 9:15 am after a short, 15-minute delay to the previous time was necessary to ensure that the morning fog had lifted enough to allow for the deployment of safety operations for today's special.



06:57
Tentative motorcycle start at 9 am local time

After yet another delay due to low altitude clouds over the course, the motorcycle race will start within minutes if the race direction gives its "all clear".



05:23 - bike
007 - Francisco López leads the charge

Chile's Francisco López is opening the road this morning as the first of the 125 motorcycle riders cleared to start today's 122 km link section. Cyril Despres set off right after him at 5:47 am local time. The Frenchman is in the overall lead, with 8'15" on Chaleco.





17:39
La Serena - Santiago: the “final straight”

With 111 km of special stage remaining, a long neutralised zone and then 15 km of "Super Special", the last stage of the Dakar 2013 should not be taken lightly. To reach the Chilean capital, the rally's heroes must still stay concentrated on fast tracks where driving pleasure will be combined with the outlook of accomplishing their mission.


After a section of road, the riders and drivers will then tackle a short showcase style route on which they can delight the spectators with skids and jumps. This will be a foretaste of the thrills the competitors will experience during the grand finishing ceremony organised the day after in front of the La Moneda palace, on Constitution Square, or ‘Plaza de la Constitución' in the local lingo.


Nevertheless, the competitors will have to avoid getting carried away tomorrow, because whilst the gaps in the quad and car general standings are pointing towards a calmer finish, in the bike and truck categories the results are not yet engraved in stone. After all, the Dakar has built its legend on last minute surprises…



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