A relatively short timed section, maximum speeds and very close differences in the final times, but also sixth place for Norwit Racing. Such was the penultimate stage of the Eco Africa Race 2026.
The penultimate stage of the Eco Africa Race 2026 was different from the previous ones. Different because two-thirds of its total distance was made up of a connecting section that went from Mauritania to Senegal. Only there did the start of the timed section, which made up the last third of the competition. As it turned out during its completion, this timed section was very fast, on the limit of maximum speeds, and the final times between the individual participants at the finish were really, really close. Martin Benko and Marek Sýkora, together with the Taurus T3 Max buggy, finished sixth with a minimal loss, but they still hold second place in the SSV category.
“The speed was nice, the sandy winding roads, the only problem was that we were still at the speed limit and it was important to guess the right braking point on those turns. Sometimes it was fine, sometimes not at all. Moreover, there were a lot of animals on the track and we didn’t want to hit any of them. We were more concerned with getting to the finish line without any problems. Tomorrow is the last stage and we have played well so far, so keep your fingers crossed for us. It’s only a short distance to the finish line,” said Martin Benko.
We are approaching the final. After fourteen days full of riding, having overcome almost six thousand kilometers of track, tomorrow in the twelfth stage the participants will fight their way to Lac Rose, the Pink Lake, where the legendary Dakar Rally also ended in the past. To get there, all participants still have to complete a total of two hundred and eighty-eight kilometers, including a short, only twenty-two-kilometer-long timed section. Then everyone awaits the coveted finish ramp, where the top three in each category will be duly rewarded.