2019 Dakar Rally Stage 6 Results — Sherco TVS Racing’s Lorenzo Santolino Crashes And Retires

Dakar 2019 Stage 6 results are out. The sixth stage did not end well for Sherco TVS Racing's Lorenzo Santolino as he crashed just 33km into the stage. Prior to his crash, he was the leading Indian participant in this year's Dakar Rally and finished in his best ever position in Stage 5; the same stage in which Hero MotoSports' CS Santosh crashed.

Stage 6 of Dakar 2019 saw participants going from Arequipa to San Juan de Marcona — a distance of 838km (502km liaison + 336km special). The route comprised of an array of challenging dune formations.

Though Sherco TVS Racing lost Lorenzo, they were impressed by Aravind KP's strong performance. He finished in the 42nd position; better compared to his previous positions and expects to climb up the charts in the coming stages. Meanwhile, the Metge brothers, Michael and Adrien crossed the line in 31st and 36th positions, respectively.

Hero MotoSports rider, Oriol Mena took over the top position for an Indian participant after Lorenzo's crash. He finished stage 6 in the 20th place. His teammate, Joaquim Rodrigues became a hero in the stage as he helped out Mena when his fuel tank went completely dry. Rodrigues finished 30th.

Stage 6 of Dakar Rally 2019 saw Pablo Quintanilla from Rockstar Energy Husqvarna finish first. Kevin Benavides (Monster Energy Honda) and Matthias Walkner (Red Bull KTM Rally) came second and third, respectively.

Coming to the overall standings, Pablo Quintanilla is in the lead. Meanwhile, Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy Honda) and Toby Price (Red Bull KTM Rally) follows close at second and third positions, respectively.

Verdict

The sixth stage wasn't that promising for the Indian teams, even though it helped a bit for many others. Stage 7 will happen in San Juan de Marcona itself (64km liaison; 323km special).