Hero MotoSports Team Rally created history as its star rider Joaquim Rodrigues won Stage 3 of the RallyGP 3 class in ongoing Dakar Rally at Al Qaisumah, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday.
This is the first-ever stage win at Dakar, the toughest rally in the world, by an Indian team and an Indian manufacturer.
In his sixth straight appearance at Dakar, Joaquim, after a remarkable comeback in Stage 2, following a difficult Stage 1, put up fantastic performance from the start. The capable Hero Rally 450 also withstood the variety of extreme terrains.
Mare also does well
The team’s other rider Aaron Mare enjoyed yet another mistake-free day as well and finished the stage in the 18 th position.
He continues to be in top-10 in overall rankings at 10th place.
The 255-km special section was lined with long stretches of alternating dune ridges and fast plateaus, and complicated intersections. Navigating through the terrain was indeed a tough task, but both riders aced all hurdles to mark a day in history for Hero MotoSport.
Memorable
“We’ve made history! It’s amazing to enjoy the first stage win for Hero MotoSports at Dakar today. We’re experiencing the sweet taste of victory after all the hard work a lot of people have put in over the past few months and years. It is also JRod’s first stage win at the Dakar, and he absolutely deserves it,” said Wolfgang Fischer, the Team Manager.
“I’m extremely happy with how my day has turned out. Even though the stage was really fast, with a lot of difficulty around alternating dunes and tracks, I was able to push hard right from the very first kilometre.
“Thank you, Hero MotoSports, for all the effort they have invested in me, and for putting me through a large number of races this year – this has definitely boosted my confidence by leaps and bounds,” said Joaquim.