Coma adds a new stage win
To alternating Marc Coma and Cyril Despres Dakar in 2012 has again repeated in today's stage, 573 kilometers loop starting and finishing in Copiapió, being this the first time round in Chile. If you eat two days gave 1 minute and 41 seconds, MRW pilot today has recovered 2 minutes and 3 seconds over Cyril Despres, who is leading the race now with 7 minutes and 48 seconds over Spanish. Eleventh was Joan Pedrero, who finished nearly 12 minutes of his team and keeps the tenth position overall.
Upon cancellation of yesterday's stage, in which the Dakar caravan crossed the Andes, today was Cyril Despres who opened the track after his victory two days ago. Mile after mile, Coma has been approached in the first half of the stage to catch him before he had to neutralize special media. After 58 miles of link together the two have resumed the march, and so have traveled the 200 miles remaining, played on sand dunes and preventing any attempt to escape.
It was a stage on which Joan Pedrero finished eleventh, 11 minutes and 47 seconds of your team leader. A result with which the pilot MRW ensures its position among the top ten in the overall standings after 15 minutes penalty imposed two days ago by changing the engine on his bike. Pedrero is now tenth, 1 hour and 22 minutes of Despres.
With a week of competition behind him, tomorrow the Dakar caravan will stop in Copiapo for the rest stage, a forced break before starting the second half of the Rally, with almost 4000 miles ahead. After 1553 miles timed, there are still 2500 against the clock, among which are two stages of over 500 miles, a marathon stage, the Atacama desert, and all the unknowns that await in Peru.
