Sam Sunderland’s Dakar Rally came to an disappointing end when the Brit crashed out of stage four.
Sunderland – who won the opening stage of this year’s really in impressive style – was airlifted to hospital where X-rays indicated some slight ligament damage but nothing broken.
Midway through the stage Sunderland’s tracking devices showed him to be at a standstill. He was shortly joined by Ivan Jakeš – who stopped to offer assistance. But when Jakeš later carried on with the race, Sunderland did not.
The accident brings an unfortunate end to what has so far been a promising rally for the KTM rider.
Ironically, Sunderland’s 2014 Dakar Rally also ended on stage four, though that time was with engine trouble.