Stage 4 turned out to be full of positives for Hero MotoSports Team Rally as both the riders made it safely to the finish line in this penultimate stage of the Atacama Rally. Oriol Mena continued his strong run to deliver another solid stage for the team to finish at the 11th place. He rode really well today, avoiding mistakes to make sure that he enters the last stage of the rally in a good position.
Another big plus for the team was that Joaquim Rodrigues was among the starters today, though with heavy penalty for not finishing the stage yesterday. He started right at the back and had to tackle poor visibility throughout because of the dust raked up by all those in front of him. It was a difficult and risky situation but he rode with his trademark calm and confidence to finish the stage 4 at the 13th position.
At the end of the penultimate stage, Oriol Mena stands at 12th place and JRod at 17th place in the overall rankings.
Stage 4 of the Atacama Rally turned out to be another very fast stage with a mix of soft piste and dunes in the 253 km timed special today. With the liaison included, the competitors had to cover a total of 371 km today.
The rally will move to its final day tomorrow with a relatively shorter stage 5 to be done entirely in the region of Copiapo after which the winner of the Atacama Rally will be crowned amidst festivities and celebrations.
Oriol Mena (Competitor# 14), « Today was a really fast special test with mix of soft piste and sand. I decided to not push too much today and focus on arriving at the finish line safely. One day more done and now it’s one day less to bring another rally in the books. There has been a lot of learning for me throughout and I am happy with the way I am riding, the bike and the team.