On Sunday 3 January, the first stage of the 2016 Dakar was cancelled owing to awful weather conditions as the helicopters could not take off to ensure rally safety. The 136 bikes, 110 cars, 45 quads and 55 trucks therefore headed to Villa Carlos Paz under link section rules. The bad weather continued the following day forcing the organisers to shorten the day's special to Termas de Rio Hondo. The contenders could however flex their muscles on some 350 timed kilometres to determine the hierarchy, once again favourable for the teams supported by Motul… even if the cards have been re-dealt to a large extent.
Thus, the rider of Sherco TVS #20, Alain Duclos, made a strong impression by coming 4th of the special. Born in Mali, which the Dakar has often crossed in the past, this 44 year old Frenchie also ranks 4th in the general standings, less than 2 minutes behind the leader. The 10th provisional place of Pedrero confirms the competitiveness of Team Sherco TVS Rally Factory and its RTR 450. By adding three Hondas, which were also very fast, five bikes bearing Motul's colours were in the top ten of the general standings on Monday evening. The best representative of the Japanese manufacturer remained Joan Barreda in 6th place.
In Quad category, dominated by Yamaha, the driver of team Rhide South Africa, Brian Baragwanath, pushed forward brilliantly from 7th to 2nd place.
