COSTLY PRICE OF DAKAR ERRORS
I ' m fit , healthy , and I ' m going home with a trophy ... that ' s the most important thing . I ' m ready for another one next year .
A record never desired , Toby Price had the 2023 edition of Dakar sealed before fate should dictate that we would finish second . A rider has never lost the world ’ s toughest rally-raid when leading the penultimate stage , a record the Australian has now broken .
The two-time champion had a twelve second lead over his Red Bull KTM teammate , Kevin Benavides , as the classic event went into the last day of competition . Not a comfortable lead but one that gave him some confidence that he would claim his third title .
“ I knew it was going to be tight ,” said Price after the finish . “ Of course , I pushed right form the start all through the stage .”
Price had the advantage of starting last on the stage , a chance to follow the tracks of others and make up time with the intent of increasing his lead . His objective to chase down and pass his teammate thwarted by navigational errors , costing him valuable time .
“ I just missed three waypoints by virtually metres ,” he continued . “ It dropped me back .”
The Australian was able to fight back in the latter half of the stage , claiming almost a minute over his teammate but it was enough , the fastest stage time
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