The 2009 Dakar Champion, Marc Coma, took his first victory of the 2010 Rally during Stage 4. Now that Coma has tasted success, the Spaniard is thirsty for more.
Lady Luck smiled on Marc Coma today as the Spaniard nabbed his first victory of the 2010 Dakar in Stage 4 and began chipping away at the lead of perennial rival, Cyril Despres. After the headaches of the previous two days, which included the withdrawal of support rider Jordi Viladoms due to a big crash, this win was just the morale boost the reigning champ needed heading into the physically and mentally demanding Stage 5.
After the late arrival of several teams to the Fiambala bivouac, race officials decided to delay the start of Stage 4 by 1 ½ hours and shorten the special from the original 126 miles to just under 100 miles. Yesterday’s winner, Cyril Despres, was the first to leave Fiambala at 5:30 a.m. on his Red Bull
KTM en route to Copiapo.
The fast and furious pace of Stage 4 seemed to suit the large KTMs as the 690cc machines were the front-runners for most of the day. At Check Point 1, Despres was in the lead with a 5:07 cushion in front of fellow Frenchman David Casteu with
BMW’s Paulo Goncalves closely behind in third. By the time the riders hit the first sandy section, Coma had used the tracks left by the others and blasted past overtaking the lead.
Cyril Despres was happy to have the opportunity during Stage 4 to run the big KTM at wide open throttle.
Showcasing years of experience, Coma was able to navigate the unmarked sandy sections like clockwork and cross CP2 ahead of Despres. Navigation through the small dunes and camel grass beyond the second check slowed Despres down allowing Casteu to get past and take over second. Arriving at the final check and the end of the shortened special in first place, Coma stole back 3:14 from Despres, who finished in third behind Casteu.
KTM’s Despres still has the distinction of topping the overall standings, but Coma will be looking to build on his success after today and continue his push for the top-spot. American Jonah Street appears to have suffered some setbacks during this difficult special. He finished in 15th, falling back to 8th overall. The American still has many chances to recover before the mandatory rest day on January 9th.
Tomorrow’s Stage 5 is entitled the “danger zone” and in this dense area, riders will face a true test of their endurance on one of the longest specials of the Rally that stretches between Copiapo and Antofagasta.
Rider Quotes:
Marc Coma (ESP – KTM) 1st, 6th OA
David Casteu pilots his Sherco machine across one of the check points during Stage 4.
“It was an important day after the bad results and the bad luck. We got our good habits back and we got back on the right track. I am very happy to be here. It’s good for the moral of the team after a few bad days. The strategy is something you do each day. We will make the most of the race, climb in the standings, and move forward... till the end. We won’t let our guard down!"
David Casteu (FRA – Sher) 2nd, 2nd OA
“I did well with navigation today. It allowed me to focus on the stage and my time ends up great in a very fast special stage. It means that the bike is going really well. It impresses me more and more each day. I never thought I could do so well in special stages with a 450... from Sherco, a manufacturer that has just arrived on the Dakar and that no one really knows.”
Cyril Despres (FRA - KTM) 3rd, 1st OA
"It was a shorter stage but it was a good one. It’s the fourth special stage of the raid and it’s the fourth great one. We finally hit a terrain that is better for our KTM bikes. It’s nice to have the wind in the face and to pick up speed... Navigation was fun too with the first changes in course - which were pretty tricky by the way. And the first small dunes, the first camel grass... the desert, for sure!"
Today's route took riders up to over 9000 ft. and then back down as they raced toward the bivouac in Copiapo.
1. COMA (ESP) KTM 01:46:58 00:00:00
2. CASTEU (FRA) SHERCO 01:49:02 00:02:04
3. DESPRES (FRA) KTM 01:50:12 00:03:14
4. LOPEZ CONTARDO (CHL) APRILIA 01:52:04 00:05:06
5. GONCALVES (PRT) BMW 01:53:57 00:06:59
6. MANCA (ITA) KTM 01:55:34 00:08:36
7. PRZYGONSKI (POL) KTM 01:55:41 00:08:43
8. PAIN (FRA) YAMAHA 01:55:58 00:09:00
9. RODRIGUES (PRT) YAMAHA 1:56:00 00:09:02
10. ULLEVALSETER (NOR) KTM 01:56:02 00:09:04
2010 Dakar Rally Overall Standings
1. DESPRES (FRA) KTM 10:44:16 00:00:00
2. CASTEU (FRA) SHERCO 10:53:09 00:08:53
3. RODRIGUES (PRT) YAMAHA 11:08:01 00:23:45
4. MANCA (ITA) KTM 11:14:07 00:29:51
5. DUCLOS (FRA) KTM 11:22:36 00:38:20
6. COMA (ESP) KTM 11:23:06 00:38:20
7. LOPEZ CONTARDO (CHL) APRILIA 11:23:23 00:39:07
8. STREET (USA) KTM 11:27:22 00:43:06
9. ULLEVALSETER (NOR) 11:35:29 00:51:13
10. GONCALVES (PRT) BMW 11:41:14 00:56:58
Stage 4 Highlight Video Courtesy of
Dakar.com.
