The 43rd edition of the Dakar Rally is underway in Saudi Arabia. We’ll be sharing daily updates from our friends at WESTx1000. Stay tuned. 
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SS3: A Mistress of Mayhem
Dakar?s Mercurial Affection Finds Itself New, Unsuspecting Targets

The Dakar Rally is tempestuous. Like a wild fling, it?s alluring, captivating, so good when it?s good that when it?s bad, you pretend it?s not so bad. One day, Dakar offers hope ? dazzling you with its magnificent features only to slap you in the face the next day over minor mistakes. In the Bike class alone, there has been much less the volleying of premium positions between pro riders, than it has been splitting a piñata and all the competitors scrambling to pick up the best candy. At the Prologue, 2020 Champion Ricky Brabec (#1 Monster Energy Honda) took First, to his dismay. Leading out SS1 with virgin soil offering zero hints, he subsequently dropped through the cracks while Toby Price (#3 Red Bull KTM) slid past to victory. Unsurprisingly, the same fate befell Price, as he too disappeared from the premiere standings and Joan Barreda Bort (#88 Monster Energy Honda) hustled to the Winner?s Circle in SS2. Then, as if someone hit the reset button, Special Stage Three circled back and repeated the pecking order from Stage One: 1st Price, 2nd Kevin Benavides (#47 Monster Energy Honda) and 3rd Matthias Walkner (#52 Red Bull KTM). Because why not" But this wasn?t the curve ball. In 4th, instead of the usual...