Stage report
Dakar Dakar 2016
Dakar Bikes, Stage 7: Goncalves pulls away as Meo gets first win
Honda rider Paulo Goncalves consolidated his lead of the 2016 Dakar Rally as event debutant Antoine Meo clinched his first ever stage victory.
Jamie Klein
Edited: Jan 9, 2016, 10:20 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
The French former enduro world champion led from the second waypoint onwards to top the 336km Uyuni-Salta stage, which featured a neutralised section for competitors to be able to cross the border back into Argentina from Bolivia.
Meo ended the day 1m57s ahead of Goncalves, who finished almost 13 minutes down on the road but was awarded 10m53s by rally organisers for stopping to help Meo's factory KTM teammate Matthias Walkner.
Having been third overall at the start of the day, Walkner suffered a fall early on in the stage, breaking his femur and being forced to withdraw.
Kevin Benavides (Honda) was third fastest on the stage, followed by Helder Rodrigues (Yamaha) and Honda water-carrier Michael Metge.
Lead KTM rider Toby Price was sixth, and now sits 5m20s behind Goncalves in the overall standings.
Stefan Svitko (KTM) moves up to third as a result of Walkner's exit, 12m off the pace, with Meo jumping from seventh to fourth ahead of Benavides and Rodrigues.
Meanwhile, Joan Barreda, who lost five hours on Friday when his factory Honda suffered engine troubles, has joined Walkner on the list of retirements having not taken the start of the stage.
Update
With only 22 bikes completing the stage before it was suspended due to poor weather conditions, the stage was neutralised from the end of the fifth waypoint, altering the results.
Consequently, Meo took the stage win by 1m53s from Benavides, who moves up to second on the day ahead of Goncalves, Metge and Price, as Rodrigues lost two minutes with a penalty.
It means Goncalves leads by 3m12s from Price, with Svitko 9m24s behind.
Having also been awarded time by rally organisers for helping the stricken Walkner, Pablo Quintanilla (Husqvarna) now lies fourth, ahead of Benavides and Meo, who loses two positions.
Standings after Stage 7:
**Pos.****No.**Rider
Bike
Time/Gap 1 2
Paulo Goncalves
Honda
22h52m30s 2 3
Toby Price
KTM
3m12s 3 5
Stefan Svitko
KTM
9m24s 4 4
Pablo Quintanilla
Husqvarna
18m06s 5 47
Kevin Benavides
Honda
21m01s 6 49
Antoine Meo
KTM
21m06s 7 7
Helder Rodrigues
Yamaha
24m44s 8 23
Gerard Farres
KTM 29m57s 9 20
Alain Duclos
Sherco
30m32s 10 17
Joan Pedrero
Sherco
31m45s
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Two MINI ALL4 Racing in the top ten
Next article Dakar Quads, Stage 7: Bonetto scores first win for Honda, Patronellis maintain 1-2
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jamie Klein
Super Formula Fuji: Ayumu Iwasa wins as Kakunoshin Ohta misses chance to seal title
Super Formula
Super Formula
Fuji II
Super Formula Fuji: Ayumu Iwasa wins as Kakunoshin Ohta misses chance to seal title
Super Formula Fuji: Igor Fraga wins while Kakunoshin Ohta closes on title
Super Formula
Super Formula
Fuji II
Super Formula Fuji: Igor Fraga wins while Kakunoshin Ohta closes on title
More from
Antoine Meo
Dakar 2018, Stage 8: Meo outduels Brabec for win
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar 2018, Stage 8: Meo outduels Brabec for win
Up to 20 riders could still win Dakar, says Honda
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar
Up to 20 riders could still win Dakar, says Honda
Dakar 2018, Stage 6: Meo fastest, Benavides takes lead
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar
Dakar 2018, Stage 6: Meo fastest, Benavides takes lead
Latest news
Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
1 h
Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction
William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
1 h
William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix
Alexander Rossi takes over IR-28 testing as IndyCar pushes new chassis to the limit at Sebring
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 2 h
Alexander Rossi takes over IR-28 testing as IndyCar pushes new chassis to the limit at Sebring
Daniel Suarez will return to Spire Motorsports for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
2 h
Daniel Suarez will return to Spire Motorsports for 2027 NASCAR Cup season
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe