The second day of racing at the 2021 Rally Kazakhstan formed leg one of the event’s marathon stage. Just shy of 280km in length, the special was high speed with racers navigating their way through a maze of desert tracks. Upon completing the stage in Bay Kendirli, all riders were excited to have posted strong results for the second consecutive day.
Continuing his solid start to Rally Kazakhstan, Andrew Short claimed third overall following a strong ride through a challenging stage two. Despite picking up a five-minute penalty yesterday after losing his timecard, the American maintains his fifth-place overall position in the provisional classification with three days of racing to go.
Winner of yesterday’s opening stage, Ross Branch delivered another impressive ride. Opening the special following his victory yesterday did little to faze the 35-year-old. After almost three hours of racing, and despite a small navigational error, Ross finished just over four minutes down on stage two winner, Skyler Howes.
Adrien Van Beveren continues to post consistent stage results at Rally Kazakhstan. Feeling comfortable on his Yamaha WR450F Rally, the 30-year-old enjoyed riding alone for much of the special and placed fourth overall. The Frenchman maintains fourth place in the provisional standings, extending his advantage over the riders behind him and now looks forward to tomorrow’s second leg of the marathon stage.
Tomorrow’s third stage, and the final leg of the event’s marathon stage, looks set to offer up a variety of challenges and terrains. Beginning with 50 kilometres of rutted desert tracks, hardpack conditions will soon follow before the special ends with a serious physical test for all riders – a 10km stretch of rolling sand dunes.
