The fifth day of the Dakar 2012 has been very positive for Laia Sanz, Especially considering the ordeal he has suffered after the fall of the fourth stage, which left his left hand damaged and it was even feared that he would not be able to take the start on this fifth day.
At the last minute, a reduction in the route in the special was announced, something that suited Laia very well so as not to subject her hand to more effort than a Dakar stage already requires. Finally, he entered the 58th position, 1.20″ behind the winner of the day, who was the Frenchman Després. With this result, Laia moves to 57th position, more than 5 hours behind the leader.
The sixth stage of the Dakar has been cancelled due to weather conditions. The San Francisco pass, at an altitude of 4,700 m, where the participants had to pass, is closed due to snow accumulation. Consequently, tomorrow there will be a rest day that will come in handy to recover physically and start the race on Saturday in better conditions.
Statements by Laia Sanz: “Yesterday I was a little scared because my hand was hurting quite a bit and I thought I had broken something. I went to see the doctors, and after several tests, they told me I didn’t have any serious injuries. Once in the stage I had less discomfort than expected and I rode quite well. When giving gas there is no problem, but when leaning and holding the handlebars in the bumpy areas is when it hurts a little. We started the day with good news, because by shortening the special, the demand was reduced a little, although it must also be said that today’s stage was very complicated, with many dangers that were not marked in the road book. Today was another one of those days when anything could happen. In addition, the navigation was very complicated, but I think Marc and I have overcome the difficulties very well.”
This fifth stage of the Dakar was not as complicated as it was supposed to be, and we will have to wait for the next stage to see if the white dunes of Fiambalá take their toll. Cyril Despres (KTM) was the one who attacked today, recovering 1’41” from Marc Coma (KTM). The general classification is practically the same as a couple of days ago, 9’51” (by 10’12”); the Catalan has gained 21 seconds from Cyril.
Text: Trialworld
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