Marc Coma sprints to first in Dakar's Stage 9
Maverick - Jan 12, 2010

The 9th stage of the Dakar was an exciting sprint finish between the rally favorites. Although the first ten to finish yesterday started side-by-side, Marc Coma was the quickest over the 170-km route. The Catalan picked up the 10th special stage victory of his Dakar career by beating general standings leader Cyril Despres by only 4 seconds.

The stage was shorter but no less difficult for the competitors in the Dakar, with an especially spectacular start side-by-side for the best 10 finishers the day before. The starters were then followed by the rest of the riders in waves of 20.  

Very soon, Marc Coma took control, leading the pack over the 170-km route almost entirely made up of the dunes around Copiapo. In the dunes, the Catalan tried to leave the other race favorites in his wake… in vain. In fact, at CP1 (at the 117-km point), it was the general standings leader Cyril Despres who put in the best time, with a lead of only 4 seconds over Coma and 20’’ over Pal-Anders Ullevalseter, now the nearest rival to the French race leader. (( 

Coma once again “stepped on the gas” in the last part of the special and the combat with his eternal rival Cyril Despres lasted right up to the finishing line. Title holder Coma had the last word, beating the Frenchman by only 4 seconds. Yesterday’s stage winner, Francisco “Chaleco” Lopez found it difficult on his Aprilia 450cc to follow the pace imposed by the big KTMs. Nonetheless, the Chilean finished his day in 3rd position, 1’14 behind the day’s winner.  

As a result, Marc Coma joins the very exclusive club of 14 bikers who have won at least ten special stages. The Catalan still remains far behind Cyril Despres who boasts 22 triumphs and even further behind the record holder on a bike, Stéphane Peterhansel with his 33 victories.

In the general standings, Despres now has a lead of 1 hour 21 minutes over Ullevalseter and 1 hour 25 minutes over Lopez. ((