Spaniard Tosha Schareina, who defended the motorcycle lead on Friday after the first Dakar victory of his career, has withdrawn from the 2024 Dakar Rally. The Valencian Honda rider crashed in an area full of treacherous rocks at kilometer 240 of the special stage, which was held in a volcanic area with winding paths. The young runner, who was second at the time of the accident, was evacuated by rescue helicopter after standing at the scene of the accident for more than an hour and a half with severe pain in his arm. He himself confirmed to EL PAÍS and the rest of the Spanish media who attended the rally the final diagnosis after a visit to the hospital in Medina: fracture of the left wrist and the acromion, a clavicle bone, in the right shoulder. If the doctors in Spain determine that he needs to undergo surgery, he will fly back tonight to have the operation and begin his recovery as quickly as possible.
“It is a very hard blow to leave the Dakar in a year that is going so well, and even more so after having done a very good prologue,” he lamented. “I'm calm, I don't make many mistakes and that's why it makes me even angrier to end this Dakar like this. “But we already know, it’s a crazy race and anything can happen,” he replied. The pilot initially received support from Botswana Ross Branch (Hero), who was with him for around 25 minutes and ultimately won the stage with a time of 05:13:55 minutes and thus took the lead in the standings. “I was riding very slowly and trying to overtake Toby (KTM's Price). I hit something with the back wheel and fell while driving slowly. “We rode a very good stage, it was a pretty slow part where there was no danger, but I followed the dust, caught something and crashed, with so much bad luck that the blow left us out,” he analyzed .
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The helicopter did not respond immediately as Schareina, 28, felt fine at all times, apart from severe discomfort in her limbs. “It was a very hard special with a lot of stones. The first time I filled up I felt very good… the mistake was being too relaxed and we paid for it,” he said maturely, not hesitating to criticize himself while sitting on the steps of the motorhome. The fall, he explained, occurred on black sand while following the individual route marked by the other participants.
The driver with German roots was taking part in his third Dakar after becoming the big revelation of 2023 in the rally raid world. After debuting in the 2021 test with a 13th place and finishing as the second best rookie in his debut, he missed the race in 2022 due to bureaucratic problems in his project with GasGas Aspar and impressed again with another 13th place at the last edition. His recent good performances earned him a place in the official Honda team, with whom he has already achieved one victory and two World Cup podiums. His second-place finish at the Sonora Rally in Mexico impressed the Japanese brand's officials, and soon after they knew for sure they were looking for a diamond in the rough when he won the Desafío Ruta 40 in Argentina.
Knowing that the lack of experience weighs heavily in the Dakar, Schareina sees this new setback in his career as a new lesson from the toughest race in the world: “We had a great season winning the World Cup and they are too.” We already take this into account. From what we did in the Dakar, they already know that we can be there, but in the end we also have to be consistent and finish the same way we started.” One mistake and one mistake are enough to say goodbye to the dream.
The first special stage of the Dakar 2024 also began with another notable setback in the car category. Frenchman Lionel Baud from Toyota had an accident with a spectator right at the start of the 417 kilometer special stage between Al Ula and Al Hanakiyah. The French driver, who opened the track for the four rebound wheels after the first car on the agenda arrived late, had the misfortune with the victim 200 meters from the starting point and turned around to alert the organization, resulting in a A delay of one hour led to the resumption of the exam. The injured person received medical treatment and was taken to the nearest hospital. Further details about his condition are currently unknown. The four-wheel stage was won by 29-year-old Belgian Guillaume de Mevius (Toyota) with a time of 4:35:59. Carlos Sainz made a great comeback after a very late start and finished second, 1:44 minutes behind the winner. This gave him a lead of more than 10 minutes over the rest of the Touareg favorites. The injured person was treated by medical services and taken to Medina Hospital with a double fracture of the tibia and fibula. Dakar director David Castera confirmed to this newspaper that he was a foreign tourist and that his life was not in danger.
The four-wheel stage was won by 29-year-old Belgian Guillaume de Mevius (Toyota) with a time of 4 hours, 35 minutes and 59 minutes. Carlos Sainz, who suffered three punctures and was on the verge of disaster, made a great comeback after a very late start, much to his delight. The Madrid native finished second, 1:44 minutes behind the winner, and had a lead of more than 10 minutes over the rest of the Touareg favorites in the overall standings. “This has only just begun,” agreed both the Audi driver and the reigning champion Nasser Al-Attiyah, who crossed the finish line in 24:47 minutes with the BRX.
Amid the general chaos, Laia Sanz shone with her buggy in 23rd place. In a period of pure survival marked by constant punctures and the threat of running out of spare tires, he surpassed several of the racing's totems.
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