2023 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship
2023 Desafio Ruta 40
Luciano Benavides scored his first W2RC victory on home soil after his podium finishes in Sonora this year and Morocco last season. The Argentinian is the new leader of the W2RC with 80 points to Toby Price’s 71.
The Australian, who suffered a shock failure in stage two, owed his survival in the race to the generosity of his team-mate Matthias Walkner, who removed the shock from his own machine to transplant into Price’s motorcycle to enable the then championship points leader to try and salvage some points from the contest. Price lost an hour in this whole fiasco and spent the remaining three stages in damage control mode.
Seventh in the W2RC ranking of the DR40, the Australian collects only a meagre haul of 9 points —not enough to resist the rise of Husky’s Benavides, who took 25 points with his win. However, Toby’s nine-points was sufficient to keep Adrien Van Beveren (Monster Energy Honda) at bay, The Frenchman finished fourth in the RallyGP W2RC with 66 points to his name, five fewer than Price.
Toby Price
“Yeah, I’m happy to get through the race all in one piece, but that day two really knocked us back. Unfortunately, it’s probably wrecked the championship for us too. It is what it is, so you just have to swallow it and move on to the next round. Obviously, there’s still a chance and you can be sure I’ll be giving everything in Morocco, but for now it’s frustrating.”
Luciano Benavides
“I’m really, really happy. It’s been an amazing race here in Argentina and to finish the race as leader of the world championship is truly something incredible. So now it’s time to celebrate a little bit, a few days of rest, and then full focus on Morocco because I want to do well there and make history as world champion. The fans here have been fantastic, especially on the final stage where they were cheering us into the finish, that felt amazing. I’d love to be able to reward them by claiming the world title.”
Ross Branch (Hero MotoSports), third in the RallyGP W2RC in Salta, ousted Kevin Benavides (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) from fourth place in the championship. The Botswanan now has 45 points to 43 for the 2023 Dakar champion, who had to skip the race due to injury.
Monster Energy Honda took over from Red Bull KTM Factory Racing in the manufacturers’ ranking. Without Walkner at his side, Price was hopelessly outnumbered by the four factory HRCs.
The final round of the 2023 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship is the Rallye du Maroc, held in Morocco from October 12-18.
2023 Desafio Ruta 40, Stage5
- Adrien Van Beveren (Honda) 2:39:44
- Ross Branch (Hero) 2:40:42
- Ricky Brabec (Honda) 2:41:23
- Toby Price (KTM) 2:42:43
- Bradley Cox (KTM) 2:43:19
- Tosha Schareina (Honda) 2:43:20
2023 Desafio Ruta 40
Outright Results
- Tosha Schareina (ESP), Honda, 15:58:46
- Luciano Benavides (ARG), Husqvarna, 16:10:22 +11:36
- Ricky Brabec (USA), Honda, 16:20:02 +21:16
- Ross Branch (BWA), Hero, 16:25:31 +26:45
- Adrien Van Beveren (FRA), Honda, 16:27:38 +28:52
9. Toby Price (AUS), KTM, 17:24:00 +1:25:14
FIM World Rally-Raid Championship Standings
- Luciano Benavides (Husqvarna) : 80 pts
- Toby Price (Red Bull KTM) : 71 pts
- Adrien Van Beveren (Honda) : 66 pts
- Ross Branch (Hero) : 45 pts
- Kevin Benavides (KTM) : 43 pts
- Jose Ignacio Cornejo (Honda) : 41 pts
FIM Rally-Raid World Cup for Rally2 Championship Standings
- Romain Dumontier (HT Rally Raid Husqvarna Racing) : 79 pts
- Paolo Lucci (BAS World KTM Racing) : 66 pts
- Jean-Loup Lepan (Duust Rally) : 58 pts
FIM Rally-Raid World Cup for Rally3 Championship Standings
- Ardit Kurtaj (Xraids Experience) : 45 pts
- Massimo Camurri (Robert Mann FFR) : 25 pts
- Mauricio Cueva (Xraids Experience) : 20 pts
Manufacturers World Championship Standings
- Monster Energy Honda : 128 pts
- Red Bull KTM Factory Racing : 122 pts
- Husqvarna Factory Racing : 114 pts
FIM Rally-Raid World Cup for Quad
- Laisvydas Kancius (AG Dakar School) : 69 pts
- Rodolfo Guillioli : 53 pts
- Juraj Varga : 46 pts
Next up is the Rallye du Maroc from 12 to 18 October.
