Santosh placed 51st overall after stage 5 at Dakar Rally

Arequipa (Peru), January 11: Indian driver C S Santosh, racing for Hero MotoSports Team, gained five positions to be 51st overall after the fifth stage of the Dakar Rally, which will now move into Bolivia.

Oriol Mena looked like a man on a mission as he clocked in his best stage at @dakar yet as we crossed the fifth and last stage of Peru. @cs_santosh22 continues to ride steadily. #HeroatDakar #RaceTheLimits #Dakar2018

Check out their ranks here: https://t.co/yJFrosbJTl pic.twitter.com/mCVjQaMSRH

— Hero MotoSports (@hero_motosports) January 11, 2018

Santosh decided to play it safe and steady as the rally neared the halfway mark to finish the stage at 52nd position. "It was a really hard day. I was feeling a bit tired in the morning as I didn't have a good sleep, so it took me a little time to get going in the stage. The stage was tough, especially the last 50km or so," Santosh said.

"The dunes were really churned up and the sand was incredibly soft. It took everything that I had and the machine had to make it through today. One more day to go before the much deserved rest day," he added.

BIKES🏍️ / CARS🚗 - STAGE 5 REPORT📹
The 🇵🇪 dunes take their toll… except for Stéphane “Monsieur Dakar” Peterhansel and Joan Barreda. Here’s how the 🇫🇷 #DakarLegend and the 🇪🇸 star came out on top at the end of stage 5 of the #Dakar2018. pic.twitter.com/pAuKTP2KTI

— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 10, 2018

Dakar debutant Oriol Mena, also competing for Hero MotoSports Team, finished 11th, his second top-15 stage finish. Overall, Mena now stands at the 21st position at the end of stage 5.

In the 5th stage, the organisers separated the route for the Quads/Bikes and Cars/Trucks. The trucks and the cars, therefore, were the first to discover the stage, even before their riders, as they made their way through the sands of Tanaka, traversing through 30km or so of mountain dunes.

The next stage will see the rally change countries to enter into Bolivia making its first halt at La Paz - the world's highest capital city. The rally will move a gear up to become faster as it leaves the sands behind to tackle the Bolivian Altiplano at the altitude of 2500m and above.

The sands of @dakar have claimed yet another this year. @aravindkp85’s Dakar campaign has come to an abrupt end due to an ankle injury. We wish you a speedy recovery, champ. Bounce back soon. @ShercoRacing #GritMakesGreat #TVSRacing #Dakar2018 pic.twitter.com/bgudpI0hHt

— TVS Racing (@TVS_Racing) January 11, 2018

Meanwhile, TVS Racing rider Aravind KP's campaign came to an abrupt end after the Indian rider sustained an ankle injury. Like last year, Aravind failed to complete the Dakar rally as the injury ruled him out from further participation.

Meanwhile, his TVS teammate Joan Pedrero on the other hand finished the fifth stage at the 18th position.

The riders and machine were tested to the extreme at stage 5 of the @dakar. @JoanPedrero finished the stage in 18th position while @aravindkp85’s campaign came to an end with an ankle injury. @ShercoRacing #GritMakesGreat #TVSRacing #Dakar2018 pic.twitter.com/O2rkzq63fG

— TVS Racing (@TVS_Racing) January 11, 2018