The weather gods again played villain in the opening of the third stage of the Dakar Rally this year. Bad weather conditions forced the organisers to reduce the stage 3 of the prestigious Dakar Rally 2016 by a little over 100kms making it a 314km long affair.
After being promoted to 87th position before the beginning of stage 3 (after riders were penalised for their respective reasons), CS Santosh finished the third stage at 62nd rank. Honda factory team rider Joan Barreda Bort dominated the stage from the very start and registered a total time of 2:30:37; CS Santosh finished 60 riders and 20 minutes and 27 seconds later.
This slow but steady improvement might mean the feat CS Santosh is hoping to achieve this time. After finishing 36th overall last year, CS Santosh is aiming to finish within the top 20 bikers. To help him achieve this feat, Suzuki has extended its support to the Indian ace machine.
Dakar 2016: CS Santosh Moves to 97th Rank After Stage 2
With more than 10 days to go, his chances of realising his dreams are solely dependent on survival which is considered to be the best weapon by the veterans. Dakar is the race for those who survive it without breaking themselves or their machines.
After Stage 3, the overall standings of the Dakar 2016 look something like this:
1. Joan Barreda (Honda) - 6:26:50
2. Stefan Svitko (KTM) - 6:27:04
3. Kevin Benavides (Honda) - 6:27:38
4. Paulo Goncalves (Honda) - 6:27:58
5. Alain Duclos (Sherco TVS) - 6:28:00
6. Matthias Walkner (KTM) - 6:28:37
7. Pablo Quintanilla (Husqvarna) - 6:29:28
8. Ruben Faria (Husqvarna) - 6:30:47
9. Juan Pedrero Garcia (Sherco TVS) - 6:31:23
10. Toby Price (KTM) - 6:31:53
