by Dimitris Diatsidis
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This Special could easily be considered the most important for Dakar 2025, shedding light on two elements of the lands of Saudi Arabia where the 47th edition of the Race is held.
The Special was able to get the mind and body in shape before Race day, starting with a long ED section on fast slopes where Ross Branch and Guerlain Chicherit made mistakes and dropped out of the Race before the technical and rocky routes. The longest Dakar Special (606 km) was split into two sections and guided the riders into a second week filled with sand in all shapes and colors.
Clarity of mind was vital for the riders to find their way out of this Dakar Rally maze of sand dunes, which ranged from white to yellow depending on the angle of the light or the composition of the sand.
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The defending champion, Ricky Brabeclet his experience do the talking. He took his 11th career Special victory, 23 seconds clear of teammate Adrien Van Beveren and moved up two places in the overall standings to 4th. The Frenchman gave a navigation tutorial and collected all the time bonuses available for the first rider on the course, securing his place in 3rd place overall, 1′11″ clear of the leader, Daniel Sanders.
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Adrien Van Beveren
One of the strongest riders in the category, Ross Branch, he fell and left the Race at 84 km. of the Specialist. It was there that Bradley Cox, W2RC 2024 champion in the Rally 2 class, retired after struggling with injury after crashing just after the start.
Until now, “Chaleco” López held the record for most Specialized wins in the motorcycle class with 11 wins. Ricky Brabec equaled the Chilean, taking his 11th win on Saturday. The Californian took his first win in 2017 and has taken all of his wins on his trusty Honda. His first win of 2025 will also dispel any doubts about his condition, following his knee injury at the Rallye du Maroc in October. It is also the 17th victory for the USA in the Race, thanks to 5 different riders: 11 by Brabec himself, 2 by Kurt Caselli, 2 by Jonah Street, 1 by Kellon Walch and 1 more by Mason Klein. The rider from Agua Dulce, who battled to victory in the Al Duwadimi ED before running out near the end, could join the 2025 honors list in the coming days.
José Ignacio Cornejo Florimo
Tosha Schareina
Results of the 6th ED Dakar:
General ranking after the 6th ED:
Source: www.zougla.gr
