Tech3 KTM’s Danilo Petrucci became the first MotoGP rider to win a Dakar stage in Thursday’s 395km special.
Petrucci had already completed the course when the stage five action was curtailed due to “demand placed on the medical aircraft”, crossing the line second and just four minutes and 14 seconds behind fellow KTM rider and two-time Dakar champion, Toby Price.
The Australian, however, was later hit with a six-minute penalty for speeding – much like Petrux yesterday – awarding the victory to the overwhelmed Italian.
“I’m crying like a baby, I can’t write” Petrucci commented on social media when the news first broke of his momentous achievement, just six days into his Dakar debut.
