Bikesportnz

It was a Monster Energy Honda Team podium lock-out in the first Rallye du Maroc stage in Morocco.

The red riders occupied the entire podium today after the first stage of the Rallye du Maroc. Joan Barreda saw off the other riders to snatch the overall race lead. Ricky Brabec and Pablo Quintanilla were hot on his trail in the day’s standings.

The first ‘real’ stage of the Rallye du Maroc and the first joint triumph for the Monster Energy Honda Team.

Although the rally had barely begun, the first day’s result turned out to be a very upbeat one for the Honda CRF450 RALLY riders at the finish-line in Zagora.

A total of 288 kilometres of special stage were covered on the day, divided into three different segments, with the opening kilometres raced over fast, dusty tracks before moving on to some thirty kilometres of dunes in the heart of the Erg Chegaga.

The riders also encountered a very difficult navigational section with off-piste tracks, further hindered by the harsh weather conditions, where a mammoth sandstorm made for some fairly treacherous riding. The final part of the route played out on stony tracks.

Barreda set a break-neck pace today and was soon leading the provisional time sheets. Team-mate Brabec followed in hot pursuit, with the pair completing the rest of the lengthy stage together.

At the finish-line in Zagora, Barreda crossed 1’10 ahead of second-placed Brabec and almost three minutes clear of team-mate Quintanilla, who proved to be very nippy over the dusty tracks of the Chegaga.

Quintanilla now holds third spot in the general standings of the Rallye du Maroc.

José Ignacio Cornejo, who looked set to make the podium on the day, made a navigation error before refuelling and dropped several minutes to his rivals, eventually posting seventh of the day.

The next stage looks likely to be a tricky affair for the Monster Energy Honda Team riders who will be forced to open the track for the 330-kilometres special stage, by now familiar to the riders, as the route will be in the opposite area to today’s stage.

By the end of the day, the riders will have completed a trek of more than 600 kilometres.

Photo courtesy Honda

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Overall after Stage 1