Dakar 2019 special stage eight has left front-runner, Ricky Brabec with a broken engine just fifty kilometers into the stage. 
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In the Eighth Special, Brabec?s Luck Ran Out for a Second Time at a Dakar

There?s only so much to say about the Peruvian landscapes hosting the 2019 Dakar Rally. It?s sandy, dusty and unpredictable. Although Special Stage 8 might have offered relatively less navigational challenges, it still has seen its fair share of obstacles. News about front runner Ricky Brabec?s (#15) DNF is dominating the media, but it?s not all bad news for the Americans? Fellow patriot, Andrew Short (#29) still has a shot at a solid finish, beginning the day?s race at 9th overall and finishing at 5th. Privateers, Garrett Poucher (#71) and Nathan Rafferty (#104) too have chances to end in Lima with positions to be proud of. Today?s mixed starting lineup of the ten best cars and bikes, as well as five best trucks and quads, made for an exciting launch. But the buzz didn?t last for everyone. A hopeful to win Dakar in bikes, destiny had different plans for the California native, who suffered the same fearful fate as so many great racers this week have had to face: withdrawal. Reportedly, his bike had a malfunction at kilometer 56 bringing Brabec to his climactic, albeit uneventful, conclusion. But we need not worry about the young American, as he has made it out of Dakar with his health. SLOVNAFT Team pilot, Stefan Svitko (#11), h...