Daniel Sanders’ title defense began on a painful note when he finished fifth at Dakar with a broken collarbone. Two months later, it seemed his recovery went immaculately as he won the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal for the second year in a row.
Box score readers will point out Sanders dominated from start to finish. While it’s true that he never lost the overall lead, he had to fight off a hard-charging Tosha Schareina to avoid being knocked off the hill.
After falling behind a bit in Stage 1 when his bike stalled while crossing a river, Schareina and Honda teammate Adrien Van Beveren both beat Sanders in Stage 2. Schareina and Sanders continued to trade blows throughout the race, meaning the slightest of errors like some misleading notes made the difference.
Despite Schareina’s best, he couldn’t erase the near-two-minute gap on Sanders.
“Tosha was pushing me the whole way in what was a really tough race with slippery, demanding conditions,” said Sanders. “It feels great to return to winning form after the injury at Dakar. Delivering this result here at Rally-Raid Portugal was important, not just for my confidence, but for the whole team.
“Although I was able to complete the Dakar, we lost a fair few points, so to get things back on track here, gives us a big boost as we fight for back-to-back championships, which is the ultimate goal this season.”
Van Beveren rounded out the podium ahead of Sanders’ KTM teammate Edgar Canet. Hero MotoSports collected a top five courtesy of Ross Branch, a bright spot that made up for José Ignacio Cornejo’s first retirement since joining the team when his bike lost power in Stage 2.
“It’s not really my kind of terrain and I didn’t feel completely comfortable throughout the week, but I’m glad to have made it through safely and picked up some valuable championship points,” Branch opined.
Canet and Dakar winner Luciano Benavides both opted to use desert tires, which are harder but not optimized for wet conditions. Honda, on the other hand, showed up with a knobbier tire that was less slick and easier to ride along Portugal’s terrain.
Still, Honda’s American riders had a tough going as they were in the same boat as Branch. Skyler Howes and Ricky Brabec, for all their accomplishments, come from desert racing backgrounds and never seemed to get the hang of the forests, mountains, and water holes. Howes admitted he “got my butt kicked” multiple times with crashes, and Brabec wasn’t any different as he even had one where he slid into a concrete pillar.
“I think I’m ready to go back to the desert, get my feet out of wet boots and put them in dry boots,” Brabec remarked. “That would be a nice change for us. Most of all, just get home and enjoy some drier temperatures.”
Results
| Finish | Overall | Number | Rider | Team | Total Time | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | Daniel Sanders | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 11:03:53 | Leader |
| 2 | 2 | 68 | Tosha Schareina | Monster Energy Honda HRC | 11:05:49 | + 1:56 |
| 3 | 3 | 42 | Adrien Van Beveren | Monster Energy Honda HRC | 11:12:18 | + 8:25 |
| 4 | 4 | 73 | Edgar Canet | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 11:24:37 | + 20:44 |
| 5 | 7 | 46 | Ross Branch | Hero MotoSports | 11:29:31 | + 25:38 |
| 6 | 9 | 77 | Luciano Benavides | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 11:313:40 | + 27:47 |
| 7 | 10 | 10 | Skyler Howes | Monster Energy Honda HRC | 11:38:11 | + 34:18 |
| 8 | 14 | 9 | Ricky Brabec | Monster Energy Honda HRC | 11:45:21 | + 41:28 |
| DNF | DNF | 11 | José Ignacio Cornejo | Hero MotoSports | DNF | N/A |
Stage winners
| Stage | Overall | Rider | Total Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prologue | 1 | Daniel Sanders | 3:01.2 |
| Stage 1 | 1 | Daniel Sanders | 1:32:01 |
| Stage 2 | 1 | Tosha Schareina | 2:54:00 |
| Stage 3 | 1 | Daniel Sanders | 2:37:55 |
| Stage 4 | 1 | Tosha Schareina | 2:50:08 |
| Stage 5 | 1 | Daniel Sanders | 1:04:30 |
Featured image credit: Matteo Gebbia / Edophoto / DPPI / ASO
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