Hero MotoSports Team Rally, the motorsport team of the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters – Hero MotoCorp, has completed the third stage of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge with its sole rider in the race, Ross Branch finishing well inside the top-10 positions, at the 6th place.
Stage 3 of the rally took the riders on a 300+ km loop around the bivouac in Qasr Al Sarab, most of which was adorned by long stretches of dunes. The harsh sun and hard to see dangers of the empty quarter posed severe threats to the competitors for a third consecutive day.
Continuing his consistent performance so far in the rally, Ross Branch delivered a solid 6th place finish on the third and penultimate stage of ADDC ’23. A crash around 100 kms into the stage resulted in Ross losing some time, however, he picked up pace in the latter half to finish just 3 minutes behind the top spot. With two days left in the race, the Botswanan currently holds the 6th place in the overall standings of the rally.
Stage 4 will be one of the longest specials of the season with 308 kms of timed sections, and another 150 kms in liaisons. Starting westward as early as 5:30 am in the morning, the day will take the competitors on one last loop around Qasr Al Sarab, before heading back to Abu Dhabi on Friday.
Ross Branch: « Stage 3 was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, at around 100 kms I had a small crash and lost some time. But otherwise, the day went well – the bike has been incredible, and I had a great time from start to finish. I just wasn’t fast enough today, but we still have 2 more days to go, and I’ll keep pushing for more. »
Provisional Rankings – Stage 3 (Rally GP Class)
1. Toby Price, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 3h 43m 29s
2. Pablo Quintanilla, Monster Energy Honda Team, + 0m 16s
3. Skyler Howes, Husqvarna Factory Racing, + 0m 19s…
6. Ross Branch, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 3m 03s…
Provisional Overall Standings after Stage 3 (Rally GP Class)
1. Adrien Van Beveren, Monster Energy Honda Team, 10h 55m 02s
2., Pablo Quintanilla, Monster Energy Honda Team, + 0m 43s
3. Toby Price, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, + 2m 56s…
6. Ross Branch, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 5m 54s…