Bikes

Toby Price believes that his fractured wrist will be ‘tough’ to deal with but nevertheless heads the Australian contingent after the first day of the 2019 Dakar Rally.

Price sits sixth in the Bikes classification after the first 84km of competitive running in Peru, sandwiched between fellow champion KTM factory riders Sam Sunderland and Matthias Walkner.

He was third and 1:31s off leader Joan Barreda Bort’s pace at the second of three waypoints but drifted to eighth and 3:08s back at the day’s finish line.

“My wrist is giving me some pain so I know the next nine days are going to be tough,” Price wrote on Twitter.

“But I can’t complain, I’m happy with sixth place today!”

Yamaha factory rider Rodney Faggotter is 19th (+11:27s) with rookies Ben Young and James Ferguson 87th and 119th respectively.

A total of 137 bikes started in Lima although two failed to make the finish.

Stage 1 – P6
The first 331km of the Dakar Rally has gone well. My wrist is giving me some pain so I know the next nine days are going to be tough. But I can’t complain, I’m happy with sixth place today! pic.twitter.com/Q0AKkrF1uL

— Toby Price (@tobyprice87) January 7, 2019

Cars

The all-Australian Holden Commodore crew of Steve Riley and Trevor Hanks is currently 70th.

Quads

John Maragozidis sits 17th in the 26-strong field of Quads on his Yamaha.

CLICK HERE for a full report on Stage 1.