It was a great second day for Laia Sanz in the 2012 Dakar. The young rider faced a tough day today between Santa Rosa de la Pampa and San Rafael, with 487 kilometres of liaison and 295 of special , where the intense heat was the protagonist, even playing tricks on the bikes as the fuel in the tanks got too hot.
Laia started in the 80th position, with a lot of dust in between in a highly technical stage. In spite of everything, her regularity and good work have allowed the Spanish rider to finish the stage in 54th position, cutting 26 places in the general classification to 56, 56 ́ behind the head of the race occupied by Marc Coma.
According to Laia Sanz: “There was a lot of dust and again it was very dangerous. We have seen the rider Bruno da Costa lying on the ground after colliding with a horse (the horse was not moving on the ground and the bike was on fire). It was a very hard day, harder than we all expected, with a lot of heat in the dune area. That has caused the petrol to boil in the tank and some bikes have had a lot of problems. Marc and I are very happy because it was a good day for us despite the toughness.”
Text: Trialworld
OTHER BIKES
Far behind Marc Coma, Cyril Despres fought the traditional duel. After calmly warming up yesterday, he was forced to start in 13th position. Along the way, he passed Olivier Pain, then Pal Anders Ullevalseter and Quinn Cody, achieving the best intermediate time at the halfway point. However, in the final stretch with sand, during the last 50 kilometres, Coma eliminates his delay and even manages to take Despres 1’18”. In the general classification, he takes the lead with a 2’30” advantage over Francisco López. The provisional podium was completed by Despres, who was 2’52” behind. In this Dakar, third place in the stage always seems to have a surprise or two in store. After Pizzolito yesterday, Joan Barreda became the revelation of the day, 2’33” behind Coma. The Husqvarna rider, winner of two stages at the recent Morocco rally, seems to be following in the footsteps of his older compatriot. Has the fact that Barreda is from Castellón, the city through which three stages of the Dakar have passed, had an influence?
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