Ales Loprais had to withdraw from the rally marathon
The ninth stage of the race was extremely successful for InstaSpot Loprais Team, led by famous racer Ales Loprais. Despite the leading position in the Truck category, Loprais decided to drop out of the race due to the tragic accident.
Overall, Ales Loprais and his crew have scored great results this year. Throughout all the stages, the team held a steady pace. It was among the leaders in the overall standings. Alas, rally raids are a dangerous business. After a fatal accident, InstaSpot Loprais Team decided to withdraw from the competition.
The Dakar 2023 has become a remarkable event. Let’s recall some of the brightest moments.
The participants began the race on New Year's Eve. The 45th Dakar rally kicked off with a 13-kilometer prologue set on the Red Sea coast. For InstaSpot Loprais Team, this short stage was a test of strength. The team finished in sixth place out of 55 crews in the Truck category, narrowly losing to Dutch driver Victor Versteijnen.
Ales Loprais, Jaroslav Valtr Jr., and Peter Pokora successfully overcame all the challenges of the first stage thanks to the high speed and well-coordinated work. The crew achieved an excellent result - second place in the overall standing at the end of the day. Thus, it climbed four positions. Martin Machik's crew was still ahead of everyone but the time gap was quite insignificant – only five minutes.
At the end of the first stage, Ales Loprais gave an interview, describing the first stage as unexpectedly tough. Moreover, the team had to start from an unfavorable position. The huge amount of dust from buggies and other vehicles made it difficult to see the road.
Nevertheless, already at the second stage of the Dakar-2023 rally, InstaSpot Loprais Team managed to improve its position in the Truck category. The new section of the road turned out to be no less taxing than the previous one. It was rocky and winding, preventing Ales from reaching the appropriate speed.
Despite technical issues and landscape features, Ales Loprais, Jaroslav Valtr Jr., and Peter Poker went through all the following stages with flying colors.
During the race, they had to struggle with severe weather conditions and treacherous terrain as well as technical problems, e.g. punctured wheels. However, neither this obstacle nor the penalties hindered the winning streak of InstaSpot Loprais Team. Thanks to stamina and determination, it quickly became one of the leaders of the race.
The last stage before withdrawal turned out to be one of the hardest for Ales Loprais and his crew. Praga V4S DKR #508 bogged down in a flooded and mudded wadi for 15 minutes. Yet, this failure did not break the fighting spirit of the racers. InstaSpot Loprais Team managed to keep other trucks behind and even pulled away a bit more. It finished fourth in the overall standings, increasing the lead in the Truck category to almost 27 minutes.
For many years, InstaSpot has been cooperating with Ales Loprais and his crew. Thanks to mutual trust and goals, we have overcome lots of challenges.
InstaSpot hopes that the next Dakar rally marathon will be even more eventful and thrilling. We are confident that Ales Loprais, Jaroslav Valtr Jr., and Peter Pokora will be able to show mind-boggling results.
We wish all crew members to gather strength and start preparing for the new season with renewed vigor!
