– Nacho breaks into Top 10 and Shlok impresses with a top 20 finish
The real challenge of the Rally du Maroc got underway today as Hero MotoSports Team Rally took on Stage 1, a long 636-kilometre journey from Agadir to Zagora, featuring 268 kilometres of timed competition.
All the 3 riders of Hero MotoSports Team Rally put up a strong showing in the Stage 1 of the Rally du Maroc today. Mike continued with his podium run and secured a second consecutive podium with a 2nd place finish in the Rally 2 Category while Nacho finished just outside of the top 5 in the 6th place in the Rally GP category. Shlok continued to impress in his journey as he made his debut in a full-length FIM World Rally-Raid Championship with 16th place finish in Rally 2, ahead of a class of much experienced riders.
In the overall rankings, Mike is on 6th place and Nacho on 8th, both being nicely placed in the top 10 while Shlok is sitting in 24th place at the end of the stage 1.
The Stage 1 took the competitors towards Zagora for a “Dakar-style” stage in that it started with a long 264km road section from 4am leading to the start of the special stage before hitting the 103km road section to the bivouac. The main challenge was posed by the length of the stage, while also giving the young rookies like Shlok a taste of the first extended test across Morocco’s varied terrain and a chance to get to grips with the elements of a typical rally raid stage.
Mike seems to have found a good rhythm right off the blocks as he secured his second podium of the rally. Today’s stage did not pose any major navigation challenge to either Mike or Nacho as they breezed through the fast and almost linear stage, clocking in good time. Shlok started the stage really well, however, midway through the stage he made a minor mistake, presenting him with another invaluable learning opportunity as he tackled the first full-length rally stage of his career.
As the riders arrive at the Zagora bivouac, the focus now shifts to the next challenge, with four more stages still to come. The Rally du Maroc continues tomorrow with Stage 2, a 423-kilometre loop around Zagora featuring a 300-kilometre timed special and presents the challenge of the famed Moroccan dunes.
Shlok Ghorpade said, « I am happy to finish my first stage in a world championship race. It was a fast stage for most part which I tackled well. I made a small error which cost me some time but that’s what I am here to learn and improve my skills. It’s a great feeling to have my first stage in the bag. «
Mike Docherty, Rider, Hero MotoSports Team Rally said, « It was a good day and I felt good on the bike today. Had a few little navigation errors but nothing major. Happy to be bring it home safely in one piece so that’s a good thing. Dunes are my favourite so I had fun and learnt a lot. Looking forward to the next stage tomorrow. «
Nacho Cornejo, Rider, Hero MotoSports Team Rally said, « It was a clean, fast stage with no crashes so I am happy to see the back of the stage 1. Today my goal was to catch the guys in the front, which took some time but I managed to do it. The times are bunched-up tightly together so in the next stages I will try to improve on my overall rankings. «
Provisional Rankings – Stage 1
01. Ricky Brabec, Monster Energy Honda HRC, 02hr 39m 57s
02. Daniel Sanders, Redbull KTM Factory Team, + 00m 23s
03. E. Canet, Redbull KTM Factory Team, + 00m 44s
06. Mike Docherty, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 03m 07s
08. Nacho Cornejo, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 06m 11s
25. Shlok Ghorpade, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 20m 20s
Provisional Overall Rankings after Stage 1
01. Ricky Brabec, Monster Energy Honda HRC, 02hr 51m 08s
02. Daniel Sanders, Redbull KTM Factory Team, + 00m 10s
03. E. Canet, Redbull KTM Factory Team, + 00m 43s
06. Mike Docherty, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 03m 26s
08. Nacho Cornejo, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 07m 07s
24. Shlok Ghorpade, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, + 21m 24s
Provisional Rankings – Rally GP – Stage 1
Nacho Cornejo, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, 6th Place
Provisional Overall Rankings after stage 1 – Rally GP
Nacho Cornejo, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, 6th Place
Provisional Rankings – Rally 2 – Stage 1
Mike Docherty, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, 2nd Place
Shlok Ghorpade, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, 16th Place
Provisional Rankings after Stage 1 – Rally 2
Mike Docherty, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, 2nd Place
Shlok Ghorpade, Hero MotoSports Team Rally, 15th Place