With a lead of 3 minutes and 27 seconds, Sam Sunderland takes his second overall victory at the Dakar with GasGas.
The 32-year-old already won the Dakar in 2017 with the Red Bull KTM team. GasGas has only been competing in the Dakar since 2020 and was now able to take the win with its third participation. However, it is important to remember that KTM and GasGas bikes are almost identical and KTM is a perennial Dakar winner.
Pablo Quintanilla (Honda) and Matthias Walkner (KTM) followed in second and third place.
Sam Sunderland: “The last stage was so difficult and so stressful … there was a lot of navigating to do and some tricky notes. I got a little confused a few times and wasn’t sure if I was going the right way. Honestly, my head was about to explode. Now I couldn’t be happier. For the last ten minutes I wasn’t sure if I had won. When they told me, it was a dream come true. I’ve had a pretty tough season, but when you win the Dakar, it’s worth all the effort. It’s so beautiful.”
Final results after 12 stages (top 10):
- 01 Sam Sunderland (GasGas) – 38:47:30 hrs.
- 02 Pablo Quintanilla (Honda) +3:27 minutes
- 03 Matthias Walkner (KTM) +6:47
- 04 Adrien van Beveren (Yamaha) +18:41
- 05 Joan Barreda (Honda) +25:42
- 06 Ricky Brabec (Honda) +34:04
- 07 Jose Ignacio Cornejo (Honda) +38:06
- 08 Andrew Short (Yamaha) +46:08
- 09 Mason Klein (KTM) +49:07
- 10 Toby Price (KTM) +49:20
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