Once again, the Dakar Rally unfolded in Saudi Arabia. On January 1, 2022, the 2022 Dakar Rally departed from Jeddah and returned to Jeddah after 12 stages, with a total of 8,375 km, including 4,258 km in special stages.
In Stage 1A on January 1, Honda racer Quintanilla finished second with a time of 56 minutes and 30 seconds. Quintanilla said happily: "At the beginning, I maintained a strong enough rhythm and aimed to advance to the top five. For me, to be able to finish second today is a good start to the journey. "In the turbulent and ever-changing Dakar Rally, the short stage of the 1A race did not open the results.
At Race 1B on 2 January, Quintanailla continued its good momentum, regaining second place in the stage with a time of 4 hours, 41 minutes and 47 seconds. On the second leg of 3 January, the aggressive Barretta made a splash, and today his navigation went well, which allowed him to free his hands and feet, fully exert his driving skills, and complete the second leg at a very fast pace, winning the 28th stage of his Dakar career and more than 5 minutes ahead of the second place!
At Stop 4, the familiar Barreta reappeared. Today he finished 24th, but quickly caught up with teammate Quintanilla. Once again, he won the 29th stage of his Dakar career! "Today I started at the back of the line and quickly got into a fast pace as soon as I started, which felt good. In fact, in the 4th stop I was on the throttle all the time and ran very hard. ”
The glue battle you chase after me continues to advance, every stop is changing, every stop has people laughing, some people crying. In the fifth race, Honda racers König and Brabeck finished third and fourth respectively. But what is heart-wrenching is that Honda's Barreta fell into the car and injured his shoulder, and with the selfless help of Honda teammate Quintanilla, Barretta gritted his teeth to complete the game, fully demonstrating the tough style of "minor injuries are not in the line of fire". Moreover, the injury did not stop Barretta's progress, he was fearless, more courageous, and again squeezed into the top three of the stage with a time of 3 hours 31 minutes and 37 seconds in the seventh race, while teammate Conig won the stage with a lead of 2 minutes and 51 seconds.
As the schedule slowly approached the finish line, the competition became more and more intense. In the eighth leg, Quintanilla finished second. The Chilean driver, who has been chasing this year's race, now has a total of 27:44:12, less than a minute away from advancing to the top three. By the ninth leg, the Honda drivers were once again shining, with all four riders advancing to the top 10 of the stage, with Connigg and Brabeck finishing first and third respectively, and Barrettah and Quintanilla finishing fifth and eighth respectively. Coniger was clearly delighted with the second stage of the year, saying: "Today is a good day, I ran smoothly, very fast. However, the total time is still 32 minutes and 30 seconds away from the first place, and we will give our all and be braver in the next battle! ”
January 14 is the last stop of the year in Dakar, from Bisha to Jeddah. In the twelfth leg, the Honda racers staged another stunning scene, with Quintanailla, Coniger and Barretta finishing first, third and fourth respectively. Quintanilla lamented: "This year's race is really tough! I guess it was the toughest I've ever experienced! I tried my best, both physically and mentally, almost exhausted! Thanks to the Honda Racing Team, who have done a lot of security work in the past two weeks, I have no worries at all! ”
2022 in Dakar came to a successful end, with the Honda racing team and crF450 RALLY racing car withstanding the brutal test of the journey of ten thousand miles, running over rocks, over the Gobi, over dunes, across rivers, and again and again to the next stop. Sweating, tearing and bleeding, the racers struggled through flowers and thorns and achieved fruitful results, winning a total of 5 stage championships, 4 stage runners-up, and 4 stage runners-up; among the top 10 racers in the total, Honda occupied almost half of the country, of which Quintanilla won the Dakar runner-up with a total time of 38:50 minutes and 57 seconds, and Barretta, Coniger and Brabec won the fifth, sixth and seventh places respectively.
The brutal Dakar further honed the strength of the Honda racing team. I believe that 2023 will be even better!
Honda Dakar crf450 RALLY
Engine type: liquid-cooled, single-cylinder engine
Valve mechanism: DOHC
Cylinder displacement: 449.4mL
Bore × stroke: 97.0mm×60.8mm
Start mode: electric start
Fuel supply mode: PGM-FI electronic fuel injection system
Drivetrain: 6-speed transmission
Maximum power: 45kW or more
Frame: Aluminum alloy double girder frame
Subframe: Carbon fiber subframe
Fuel tank volume: 34.7L
Suspension system:
(Front) inverted fork with 310mm stroke
(Rear) monotube shock absorber, stroke 305mm
Braking system:
(Front) 300mm single disc, dual-piston calipers
(Rear) 240mm single disc, single piston caliper