2024 Dakar Rally – Stage Eight
Al Duwadimi > Ha’il
Stage Eight of the Dakar Rally lessened the intensity somewhat with the 458-kilometre timed special split into two – a 179-kilometre liaison joining the two very different halves. The first leg consisted mainly of sandy tracks and dunes, but the second half posed more of a challenge with stones and rocks covering much of the final 119 kilometres leading to the finish in Ha’il.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Kevin Benavides proved unstoppable for the stage, claiming the win and shaving precious minutes off his gap to the leaders. Teammate Toby Price remained consistent in fifth by comparison, knocking a few minutes off his standings, but the clock is well and truly counting down with just four stages left.
Kevin Benavides – P1
“It has been a really good day today – I really enjoyed the ride. The stage was split into two with the first part more sandy tracks and dunes, but with a lot of navigation. And the second part was more stone and mountains. The two guys opening the stage – my brother and Nacho (Cornejo) – did a really good job, but I was able to catch them both by the end. I’m so proud to win the stage and have a 1-2 with my brother. It means I’ll be opening tomorrow, so hopefully I will do a good job. I’ll give it my all as always.”
Toby Price – P5
“Stage eight here at Dakar and we got through pretty decently, I’d say. No major mishaps or mistakes or anything today, so on that side it was good. The first half was all dunes and sand, then after a long liaison, we went into the second part of the stage, which was all stones and off-piste tracks and stuff. The caps were a little harder to follow but it felt like we did a pretty decent job there too. I’m happy with fifth for the stage, and it gives us a good position for tomorrow, but we’re just not quite where we need to be on time. I’m feeling good though, having fun out there, and now I’ll look forward to tomorrow.”
By comparison, rounding out the stage top three were Husqvarna’s Luciano Benavides and Honda’s Adrien Van Beveren. Jose Ignacio Cornejo adding another Honda in the top five, with a fourth-place finish.
Luciano Benavides – P2
“I’m happy with my pace over the past few days, I definitely feel like I am racing faster than I was in week one. The same as yesterday, I was really close to getting the stage win but I just fell short because I made a small mistake near the end of the special and crashed. It’s the first time Kevin and I have done a Benavides 1-2 at the Dakar, so that’s pretty special, for us as brothers and for Argentina.”
Adrien Van Beveren – P3
“I was riding well and I felt good on my bike but I had to make a choice when I checked the times of my competitors at the refuelling point. I had to make a calculation to slow up as I didn’t want to pay the price by starting up front tomorrow. Even though I did this I still finished third so I don’t think it was the best choice in the end. I’m not happy to throw away a stage victory in this way as it’s not a good feeling, but let’s see if we can make some difference over the next days.”
José Ignacio “Nacho” Cornejo – P4
“I had a good stage today even though it was tricky, it was easy to make big mistakes so it was a case of trying to ride safely and smoothly. I lost just a little bit of time today but I have a good starting position for tomorrow which should help for stage nine.”
It was a tough day for Aussie Daniel Sanders who completed the technically challenging stage eight as the ninth-fastest racer. After making a couple of small mistakes early on, Chucky put his head down and was able to finish the 458-kilometre special just over five-minutes adrift of the stage winner.
Daniel Sanders – P9
“Today didn’t start so well for me, unfortunately. I made a mistake early on and then crashed on top of a dune, so by the refuelling point I’d already lost around four minutes. After that, I focused on my navigation. It was really rocky in the second half of the stage, so it was a tough day but we’re feeling good for tomorrow.”
When it comes to the overall front-runners, the battle was further down the field. A single second difference split Ricky Brabec and Ross Branch after the previous round, with Brabec extending that to 42s after Round Eight with his seventh-place finish. Ross Branch came home in eighth meanwhile, both clearly managing their lead to the rest of the field.
Ricky Brabec – P7 (Overall Lead)
“I didn’t want to start too far away from Ross tomorrow so I had to play a little bit of cat and mouse with him. I caught him early on so stuck with him all day, then at the refuelling point I saw some times and I was winning. I let Ross take over and open the way to the finish line as we had to play smart today and I didn’t want him starting behind me tomorrow. It was still a good day to finish seventh and I’ll continue to have fun out there.”
Ross Branch – P8
“Today was a long stage, and a little bit risky in the morning with all the camel grass and the dunes. We lost a bit of time, but nothing too serious. It was a good stage, and overall I was able to manage the stage well. We’re in a good stage for tomorrow, the bike’s doing great and the team’s putting in the best of their efforts. Looking forward to tomorrow!”
Jose Ignacio then holds third in the standings, trailing by over four-minutes, Adrien Van Beveren fourth (+11m58s) and Kevin Benavides fifth (+20m31s).
Toby Price is just outside the top five, in sixth and had 29m10s to close down to the leaders. Daniel Sanders in seventh has 38m43s to battle for, with Luciano Benavides facing a similar challenge, trailing 39m35s.
2024 Dakar Rally Stage Eight Results
| Pos | Rider | Nat. | Team | Time/Gap |
| 1 | Kevin Benavides | (ARG) | Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing | 3H 35’03” |
| 2 | Luciano Benavides | (ARG) | Husqvarna Factory Racing | +0’31” |
| 3 | Adrien Van Beveren | (FRA) | Monster Energy Honda Team | +1’27” |
| 4 | Jose Ignacio Cornejo | (CHL) | Monster Energy Honda Team | +1’41” |
| 5 | Toby Price | (AUS) | Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing | +2’18” |
| 6 | Rui Gonçalves | (PRT) | Sherco Rally Factory | +2’24” |
| 7 | Ricky Brabec | (USA) | Monster Energy Honda Team | +4’08” |
| 8 | Ross Branch | (BWA) | Hero Motosports Team Rally | +4’49” |
| 9 | Daniel Sanders | (AUS) | Red Bull Gasgas Factory Racing | +5’10” |
| 10 | Stefan Svitko | (SVK) | Slovnaft Rally Team | +5’28” |
Stage Nine Route
With riders spending the night next to Ha’il airport, they will take off for stage nine towards AlUla which makes a return to the route on this year’s Dakar. The fascinating ancient city will welcome the riders after a total 639 km distance, 417 km of which will test them to their limits with complicated navigation and rocky expanses keeping them on their toes.
2024 Dakar Rally Standings after Stage Eight
| Pos | Rider | Nat. | Team | Time/Gap | P. |
| 1 | Ricky Brabec | (USA) | Monster Energy Honda Team | 36H16’31” | 1m |
| 2 | Ross Branch | (BWA) | Hero Motosports Team Rally | +0’42” | 1m |
| 3 | Jose Ignacio Cornejo | (CHL) | Monster Energy Honda Team | +4’21” | 6m |
| 4 | Adrien Van Beveren | (FRA) | Monster Energy Honda Team | +11’58” | |
| 5 | Kevin Benavides | (ARG) | Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing | +20’31” | 3m |
| 6 | Toby Price | (AUS) | Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing | +29’10” | |
| 7 | Daniel Sanders | (AUS) | Red Bull Gasgas Factory Racing | +38’43” | |
| 8 | Luciano Benavides | (ARG) | Husqvarna Factory Racing | +39’35” | 15m |
| 9 | Stefan Svitko | (SVK) | Slovnaft Rally Team | +1H 11’53” | |
| 10 | Martin Michek | (CZE) | Orion – Moto Racing Group | +1H 56’53” | 1m |
Dakar Rally 2024 Route Map
2024 Dakar Rally Schedule
| STAGE | DATE | START AND FINISH | Total | Special |
| 9 | Tuesday, January 16, 2024 | HAIL > AL ULA | 639 km | 417 km |
| 10 | Wednesday, January 17, 2024 | AL ULA > AL ULA | 612 km | 371 km |
| 11 | Thursday, January 18, 2024 | AL ULA > YANBU | 587 km | 480 km |
| 12 | Friday, January 19, 2024 | YANBU > YANBU | 328 km | 175 km |
