Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team Look Ahead To Dakar's Last Two Stages 18.01.2018: Fully supporting team rider Rodney Faggotter on his quest to reach the big finish of the 2018 Dakar Rally, the Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team have their eyes set on wrapping up their two-week

Fully supporting team rider Rodney Faggotter on his quest to reach the big finish of the 2018 Dakar Rally, the Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team have their eyes set on wrapping up their two-week-long adventure in South America on a positive note.



Following the cancellation of Thursday's timed special, Rodney reached the San Juan bivouac in the late afternoon hours. Proudly representing Yamaha in this epic adventure, the Aussie racer is looking to continue his consistent run of form for the last two stages of this year's Dakar.



Rodney's role within the Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team has been of crucial importance since the start on January 6 in Lima. Providing assistance to his teammates whenever that was necessary, the experienced Aussie rally racer has managed to earn a spot inside the top 20 in the provisional overall standings. Currently placed 18th in the overall, Rodney will aim for a top-15 result when the race reaches its finish line in Córdoba on Saturday.



Putting her vast experience in rally racing to good use, Yamaha supported Camelia Liparoti is currently sixth overall in the SXS class of the 2018 Dakar Rally. Making a debut appearance in the latest Yamaha YXZ1000R side-by-side machine, Camelia is two stages away from realising her goal of reaching the finish line for the ninth time in her career.



In the Quad class, Yamaha's Ignacio Casale looks set to secure the second Dakar Rally victory of his career. Leading the overall by one hour and 34 minutes to his closest competitor, the Chilean rally star has his eyes set on the finish of the event on Saturday. Yamaha's domination in the Quad class is demonstrated by the presence of nine Yamaha riders inside the top 10.



Friday's penultimate stage of the 2018 Dakar Rally will be no walk in the park. Featuring a 369km timed special along with a long 560km liaison section, it will bring competitors one step closer to the finish of the 2018 Dakar Rally.




Rodney Faggotter - Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team #44
18th Overall


"Following the cancellation of the stage, we arrived at the San Juan bivouac after a pretty long ride section. Yesterday the first day of the marathon stage went pretty well for me. I cruised along to a top 20 result. I took care of the bike and myself and that paid off. I made no mistakes and had no crashes and I'm pretty happy about that.



 It was disappointing to see all of my teammates forced to sit out of the race in the last few days, but we keep doing our best to cross the finish line. I hope Adrien and Xavier will recover well and soon. It's just me left now and my goal is to bring my bike home to wrap up this tough event on a high note for the team and myself."




Alexandre Kowalski - Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team Director


 "The last few days have been tough for us but we are still in the game for the finish with Rodney. We are all behind him at the moment and we want to make sure we all our best to help him realise his goal of finishing the Dakar. These last two days have been really warm here in Argentina. Rodney arrived at the San Juan bivouac late this afternoon and our mechanics immediately started preparing his bike for the coming two stages. Rod did a great job since the start of this rally and we he's played a key role for the team.



We now want to see him cross the finish line with a good overall result on Saturday, so that we can all wrap up this challenging event with a positive note. I believe a top 15 in the overall is well within his reach. Today we also had the chance to talk to Adrien and Xavier on the phone. Adrien is already in the hospital in Buenos Aires.



 He needs to spend 24 hours there for doctors to make sure his condition is stable and then on Friday he will fly to Paris with his own doctor by his side. Adrien is surely disappointed by how things panned out this year, but he is recovering well and is looking forward to returning home. As for Xavier, he is already in Lyon and will have his arm operated in the coming days."




Dakar Rally 2018 - Provisional Overall Classification [After Stage 12]


1. Matthias Walkner (AUT), KTM, 36:33:37
2. Kevin Benavides (ARG), Honda, 37:05:37, +32:00
3. Toby Price (AUS), KTM, 37:12:54, +39:17
4. Gerard Farres (ESP), KTM, 37:22:54, +49:17
5. Antoine Meo (FRA), KTM, 37:32:43, +59:05
6. Ricky Brabec (USA), Honda, 37:51:47, +01:18:10
…

18. Rodney Faggotter (AUS), Yamaha, 39:54:51, +03:21:14




Race Schedule - Dakar Rally 2018


Stage 13 | Jan 19 | San Juan to Córdoba | SS: 423km | Total: 904km
Stage 14 | Jan 20 | Córdoba to Córdoba | SS: 119km | Total: 284km




- Yamaha Amsterdam, also photo