Dakar 2011, Stage 13, Cordoba-Buenos Aires

Jan 15

Road section 645 km, Special 181 km

The Dakar 2011 came to an emotional end for Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain. Frans Verhoeven and Pedro Bianchi Prata went into Saturday´s final test with the mission to further improve their position in the overall ranks.
Verhoeven lived up to his intentions and gave a super-strong performance. The Dutch rally ace takes the stage from Cordoba to Buenos Aires and sets an exclamation mark on a race that hasn´t always been kind to the Bavarian newcomer squad. After all the blood, sweat and tears of 9.000 km racing across the south-american continent, Verhoeven claims the second stage victory for the team.

Frans Verhoeven: "I entered the day determined to post a top result for the team. The bike worked awesome today and made this win possible."

Verhoeven passed three riders during the super-fast stage to finish ahead of Portuguese rider Helder Rodrigues. Verhoeven moves up in the standings and finishes 15th overall. A lot more could have happened if the team hadn´t been so badly hurt by crashes and that particular incident when a stone damaged Verhoeven´s engine case.

The final stage marks a forgiving end for the team, which emphasises once more how competitive the speedbrain-developed BMW G 450 RR really is.

Pedro Biancho said farewell to the Dakar 2011 with a satisfying result also. The Portuguese finishes the rally legend among the Top 30, achieving his personal goal.

Team principal Wolfgang Fischer: "I´m happy for the whole team to post such a result as the race ends. We tried throughout our debut to make the best of any given situation. We finish inside the Top 15 and take another stage win today. We led the proceedings during five stages and owned two of them. That´s a solid foundation to keep working hard and keep fighting for wins."

Dakar 2011, Stage 13

1. Frans Verhoeven (NEL), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain 2. Helder Rodrigues (POR), Yamaha, 0:05 min behind 3. Jean Azevedo (BRA), KTM, 0:19 4. Cyril Despres (FRA) KTM, 0:44 5. Marc Coma (SPA), KTM, 2:16 6. Henk Knuiman (NEL), KTM, 2:47 7. Juan Pedrero Garcia (SPA), KTM, 3:05 8. Pal-Anders Ullevalseter (NOR), KTM, 3:51 9. Jacek Czachor (POL), KTM, 4:38 10. Miran Stanovnik (SVN), KTM, 5:16

28. Pedro Bianchi Prata (POR), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 11:22


Final standings

1. Coma
2. Despres, 15:04 min behind
3. Rodrigues, 1:40:20

15. Verhoeven, 7:22:52
30. Bianchi Prata, 12:58:47

Dakar 2011, Stage 9, Copiapo-Copiapo

Jan 11

Road section 35 km, Special 235 km

Today´s special stage of the Dakar 2011 made somewhat up for all the bad luck which Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain experienced lately. Frans Verhoeven finished the loop around Copiapo in second place, scoring his best result of the rally so far. Going into the stage, it was unclear for a while whether the Dutchman would even be able to start. But he could participate in the mass start format and was sent ahead with the second group of riders, right behind the top ten. As all riders struggled inbetween the big dunes with navigation problems, Verhoeven found the conditions to his liking. He quickly caught the lead group to take command of the action.

Verhoeven crossed the finish in believing he had won the stage. Then U.S. rider Jonah Street, who had started five minutes later, posted a faster time. The speedbrain BMW pilot nevertheless expressed satisfaction with his performance. He´s now lying 25th in the overall standings.

Frans Verhoeven: "Why don´t things always go like this? Today was a very good one. Sometimes it felt like Motocross, with all these dune crossings. I´m happy with my riding and the bike, which worked fine."

Teammate Pedro Bianchi Prata rode good as well. The Portuguese didn´t need to provide assistance and was able to concentrate on his own race. He scored 38th on the day and sits in 39th place overall.

Dakar 2011, Stage 9

1. Jonah Street (USA), Yamaha
2. Frans Verhoeven (NEL), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 3:38 min behind 3. David Casteu (FRA), Sherco, 3:40 4. Gerard Farres Guell (SPA), Aprilia, 4:30 5. Jordi Viladoms (SPA), Yamaha, 5:46 6. Daniel Gouet (CHI), Honda, 6:02 7. Cyril Despres (FRA) KTM, 6:03 8. Pal-Anders Ullevalseter (NOR), KTM, 6:59 9. Marc Coma (SPA), KTM, 7:08 10. Francisco Lopez Contardo (CHI), Aprilia, 7:53

38. Pedro Bianchi Prata (POR), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 31:26

Overall standings

1. Coma
2. Depres, 8:14 min behind
3. Lopez Contardo, 23:33

25. Verhoeven, 6:22:28
39. Bianchi Prata, 9:26:38

Dakar 2011, Stage 8, Antofagasta-Copiapo

Jan 10

Road section 268 km, Special 508 km

Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain thought they had experienced enough bad luck so far during the Dakar 2011. But stage eight from Antofagasta to Copiapo made things only worse.

The big problem of the day: Parts of the route were highly dangerous. Hidden stones in the sections they call "Fesch Fesch" made riding safely through a lottery. Paulo Goncalves, who gained ground yesterday following his electrical problems on Friday, was going well after the start. The Portuguese led the ranking at kilometer 50 before hitting such a hidden stone. When he tried to pick himself up, he recognised a heavy pain in his shoulder. Diagnosis: broken collarbone. The race is over for him.

And another blow was happening right next. Frans Verhoeven had entered the stage behind his teammate. The Dutchman crashed nearly at the same time just a few kilometers down the road. Verhoeven remained ok, but he did hit a stone quite hard, resulting in a hole to his engine case. Pedro Bianchi Prata, third rider in the team, stopped and helped. He lost valuable time as well. Following the intensive repair, Verhoeven lies four and a half hours back in the stage classification. Bianchi Prata is two hours back. Outcome to be determined...

Team principal Wolfgang Fischer: "We really thought we had experienced enough bad luck by now. First we´re losing David Fretigne, who can´t even compete after his crash at a test race. Then his replacement Ze Helio goes down and breaks the collarbone. Next it´s mechanical problems twice, and now Paulo is out of the rally.
There´s nothing you can do, that´s racing. All we can try is to make the best of the situation and attempt to keep Frans and Pedro in the race in the best possible way.

2011 Dakar, Stage 8
1. Coma (ESP), KTM 2. Depres (FRA), KTM, 01:55 Minuten Rückstand 3. Lopez Contardo, (CHL), Aprilia, 04:21 4. Rodrigues (PRT), Yamaha, 08:38 Minuten Rückstand 5. Ullevalseter (NOR), KTM, 25:03

63. Bianchi Prata (PRT), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 2:41:30

*****

Dakar 2011, Stage 6, Iquique - Arica

Jan. 7

Road section 265 km, Special 456 km

Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain had a black day on Friday as the Dakar route took the field from Iquique to Arica. Following yesterday´s brilliant stage with two riders on the podium, things went terribly sour for Paulo Gonvalves and Ze Helio.

The likeable Brazilian crashed 50 kilometers into the stage, breaking his collarbone. The Dakar 2011 is over for him. Thursday winner Goncalves meanwhile suffered from mechanical gremlins. The Portuguese had to deal with electrical problems basically all day. The machine kept stopping until it completely denied service 40 kilometers from the finish line. Later this evening it was still unclear when he would be able to reach the bivouac.

Teammates Frans Verhoeven and Pedro Bianchi Prata had stopped and lent support with tools. But they couldn´t really help solve the technical misery. Hopes for Goncalves to finish the rally high up in the ranks have now disappeared.

The top result for the team was delivered by Frans Verhoeven. The experienced Dutchman rode calm and collected to end the day in tenth place. Verhoeven improved to eighth in the standings.

Dakar 2011, Stage 6

1. Ruben Faria (POR), KTM

2. Helder Rodrigues (POR), Yamaha, 0:50 min behind 3. Cyril Despres (FRA), KTM, 3:54 4. Marc Coma (SPA), KTM, 5:20 5. Stefan Svitko (SVK), KTM, 8:07 6. Francisco Lopez Contardo (CHI), Aprilia, 9:00 7. Ivan Jakes (SVK), Yamaha, 9:32 8. Jordi Viladoms (SPA), Yamaha, 10:27 9. Pal-Anders Ullevalseter (NOR), KTM, 13:25 10. Frans Verhoeven (NEL), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 17:15

53. Bianchi Prata (PRT), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 1:56:28

Overall standings

1. Coma
2. Despres, 08:48 min behind
3. Lopez Contardo, 22:12

8. Verhoeven, 1:01:50
37. Bianchi Prata, 5:20:17

*****

Dakar 2011, Stage 5, Calama - Iquique

Jan. 6

Road section 36 km, Special 423 km

The fifth and very demanding stage of the Dakar 2011 marks a milestone for young Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain. Paulo Gonvalves wins aboard the speedbrain-developed BMW G 450 RR in convincing fashion and lands the first Dakar stage victory for BMW since ten years, making it a remarkable or even historic day for the Bavarian brand. Also because the Monster Energy X-Raid partner squad owns the car division with Peterhansel/Cottret in their BMW X3 CC.

Team principal Wolfgang Fischer: "It´s a great experience for our young team to celebrate such a success upon our first Dakar. I´d like to thank everyone involved, the team members, the supporters and all who believed in us. Today sets a true milestone."

Paulo Goncalves entered Thursday´s stage in 11th spot following his navigation error on Wednesday. He rode a fine, controlled race and found himself right there when Frenchman Olivier Pain crashed and injured himself.
Goncalves resumed his ride once the medical crew had arrived. Nevertheless he and teammate Frans Verhoeven headed the field for quite some time, finally arriving first and third at the finish in Iquique.

The route offered a lot of variations, from steep descents to stone-filled passages and giant dunes near the ocean. As he had Iquique in sight, Goncalves played it safe when the correct way was unclear to him inbetween the dunes. The extra miles costed him the lead and, when Verhoeven crashed over one of the last dunes, the win for the team almost disappeared in the very last moment.

But the GPS monitoring rewarded Goncalves back with the time he lost while assisting Pain. Verhoeven missed second place by just one second, nearly making it a double victory for the team.

Dakar 2011, Stage 5

1. Paulo Goncalves (POR), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain 2. Francisco Lopez Contardo (CHI), Aprilia, 2:18 min behind 3. Frans Verhoeven (NED), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 2:19 4. Marc Coma (SPA), KTM, 3:58 5. Cyril Despres (FRA), KTM, 4:10 6. Helder Rodrigues (POR), Yamaha, 10:01 7. Ruben Faria (POR), KTM, 12:05 8. Jonah Street (USA), Yamaha, 15:15 9. Pal-Anders Ullevalseter (NOR), KTM, 17:01 10. Juan Pedrero Garcia (ESP), KTM, 17:36

16. Ze Helio (BRA),  BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 27:18 55. Bianchi Prata (PRT),  BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 1:37:13


Overall standings

1. Coma
2. Despres 10:14 min behind
3. Lopez Contardo 18:32
4. Goncalves 21:42

10. Verhoeven 49:55
11. Ze Helio 50:36
38. Bianchi Prata 3:29:09

Dakar 2011, Stage 3, San Miguel-San Salvador de Jujuy

Jan 4.

Road section 231 km, Special 521 km

Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain delivered a strong team result during the first major test of the Dakar 2011.
As the route led through desert-like landscape and canyons with lots of changing altitude, Paulo Goncalves for the first time managed to pressure the leaders.

He and his teammates felt home on the challenging terrain with a mix of sand, stones and corners. The Portuguese headed the standings at the beginning of the two-part 520 kilometer long special test, before losing a bit of ground in the second part due to a crash. This might even have costed him the stage win.
Goncalves´ third place promoted him to fourth in the overall standings.

Ze Helio also enjoyed his time. The Brazilian had to cope with slower riders right after the start. He swallowed loads of dust early on, but then managed to put the hammer down. Ze Helio ended the stage in sixth place. He now sits in fifth position in the overall classification.

Frans Verhoeven meanwhile had a tough day. He found out late yesterday that he would receive a time penalty for speeding. The Dutchman began today´s stage in 24th place. Considering all the other riders Verhoeven had to pass, 19th at the finish is a decent result.

Pedro Bianchi Prata, the fourth rider on the team, endured a bad day. A sting of a bee to his hand ruined his ride. The friendly Portuguese had to make the best of the situation. He´s still lying well in the upper third of the motorcycle field. Team principal Wolfgang Fischer nevertheless expressed satisfaction with Tuesday´s outcome.

Paulo Goncalves: "What a great stage. Just what I like. Unfortunately, I lost a little bit of concentration in a downhill passage while riding the second part of the special. I went down and maybe lost an even better finish, but it´s still been a good day."

Dakar 2011, stage 3
1. Coma (ESP), KTM
2. Depres (FRA), KTM  02:21 Minuten Rückstand
3. Goncalves (PRT), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 03:36
4. Pain (FRA), Yamaha, 04:34
5. Faria (PRT), KTM, 05:46
6. Ze Helio (BRA),  BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 07:02
7. Viladoms (ESP), Yamaha, 08:22
8. Rodrigues (PRT), Yamaha, 09:18
9.Casteu (FRA), Sherco, 10:01
10. Pedrero Garcia (ESP), KTM, 10:53
19.Verhoeven (NED),  BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 22:20
34. Bianchi Prata (PRT),  BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 38:14

2011 Dakar Overall standings
1.Depres
2.Coma, 00:14 Rückstand
3.Faria, 09:38
4.Goncalves, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 10:43
5.Ze Helio, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 16:07
17. Verhoeven, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 42:05
31. Bianchi Prata, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 1:14:38

*****

Dakar 2011, Stage 2, Cordoba-San Miguel

Jan. 3, 2011

Road section 440 km, Special 300 km

The second stage of the Dakar 2011 saw the riders of Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain complete the day without problems. After the treacherous route from Cordoba to San Miguel, all four pilots arrived at the finish without special occurrences. Monday´s route included a lot of jumps and plenty of unclear turns.

The top ten riders are lying within 12 minutes, underlining the competitiveness of the field in the now mandatory 450cc class. Paulo Goncalves, Ze Helio und Frans Verhoeven are ready for the upcoming difficult and long stages.

The four BMW G 450 RR are running like clockwork.

Dakar 2011, Stage 2 (preliminary)
1. Cyril Despres (FRA), KTM
2. Marc Coma (SPA), KTM, 1:49 min behind
3. David Casteu (FRA), Sherco, 3:46
4. Francisco Lopez Contardo (CHI), Aprilia, 4:06
5. Ruben Faria (POR), KTM, 5:42
6. Olivier Pain (FRA), Yamaha, 6:44
7. Jonah Street (USA), Yamaha, 7:36
8. Paulo Goncalves (POR), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 7:39
9. Helder Rodrigues (POR), Yamaha, 7:56
10. Frans Verhoeven (NEL), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 8:12
12. Ze Helio (BRA), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 8:32
36. Bianchi Prata (POR), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 21:29


Dakar 2011, Overall standings (preliminary)
1. Despres
2. Coma, 2:35 behind
3. Faria, 6:13
5. Goncalves, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 9:28
9. Ze Helio, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 11:26
10. Verhoeven, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 12:06
33. Bianchi Prata, BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 36:45

2011 Dakar, Stage 1, Part 2

January 2, 2011

The first real test at the Dakar 2011 came during the second part of stage one. Team BMW Motorrad by speedbrain is satisfied with the outcome, placing three BMW inside the top ten.

Team principal Wolfgang Fischer had advised his riders before the start not to take too many risks. All speedbrain pilots began the day with higher numbers and had to deal with dust from the competitors in front.

Throughout the stage, which offered a nice combination of fast and technical sections, the speedbrain quartette played it safe and made it to the finish line safely.

Paulo Goncalves was the quickest of the four, as he passed quite a few opponents to finish Sunday´s 192 kilometer long special test in fifth place. The Portuguese now has a much better starting position when he enters tomorrow´s stage.

Goncalves: "Everything went well and according to the plan. I managed to pass two riders and had a nice flow."

Teammate Ze Helio felt home on the Argentinian soil. Cheered on by many fans, the likeable Brazilian looked good on the BMW G 450 RR. Although he hadn´t ridden the bike since last August, Ze Helio comfortably finished the stage in eighth place.

Frans Verhoeven took advantage of his experience. The Dutchman knows exactly how much risk lies in the first race day. He´s ranked in tenth position, also fully within his goals for the opening.

Pedro Bianchi Prata, who entered the stage with start number 32, suffered a lot from dust.

The times are very close among the favorites. The race is on and tomorrow´s stage from Cordoba to San Miguel de Tucuman leads through bushy and wooded territory. The riders are in front of 740 km altogether, 300 of them being special stage.

Dakar 2011, Stage 1
1.Faria (PRT), KTM
2.Depres (FRA), KTM, 00:29 Minuten Rückstand
3.Coma (ESP), KTM, 01:15
4.Pedrero Garcia (ESP), KTM, 02:13
5.Goncalves (PRT), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 02:18
6.Street (USA), Yamaha, 03:07
7.Lopez Contardo (CHL), Aprilia, 03:14
8.Ze Helio (BRA), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 03:23
9.Viladoms (ESP), Yamaha, 04:11
10. Verhoeven (NED), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 04:23
36. Bianchi Prata (PRT), BMW Motorrad by speedbrain, 15:45