Antofagasta to Iquique
The start of day 6 was marked with dust and confusion. At kilometer 29, many riders went the wrong way down a dried up river bed. David Fretigne, Alain Duclos and “Chaleco” Lopez were among the riders who made the wrong turn.
Marc Coma was able to take advantage of the navigational mistake and rode flawlessly to his second stage win this year.
“I must have passed quite a number of riders but there was so much dust... it was tricky,” said Coma, who finished ten minutes ahead of Cyril Despres for the day.
With today’s finish, Coma jumps up to fourth place, but is still more than an hour behind the leader, Despres, in the general standings. “I have to be realistic it is hard... even impossible almost,” says Coma. “But it does not mean the raid is over.”
Despres, who leads his closest competitor, Lopez Contardo, by more than forty minutes, has to manage his lead for the remainder of the Dakar to win the race. But a mistake free ride is hard to come by on this treacherous terrain.
Yesterday, experienced rider David Casteu had to withdraw from his first Dakar in seven years due to an accident. Today, Luca Manca, a young but talented rider participating in his first Dakar, was rushed to a nearby hospital after a serious accident. Manca suffered a serious concussion, and is currently in critical condition.
