The action continues for the Monster Energy Honda Team on the other side of the Andes

A week after competing in the third round of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship, Monster Energy Honda Team move on to the next date in the race calendar – the Desafio Ruta 40 – held in Argentina over the final days of August.

 Monster Energy Honda Team will barely have time to rest in a chock-a-block August which has already seen participations in the Atacama Rally in Chile and the Vegas to Reno in the United States. One week on, it’s time for the Desafío Ruta 40, on the other side of the Andes, which awaits the competitors in the fourth round of the rally raid discipline.

 For the first three rounds of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies calendar the Monster Energy Honda Team has been spearheaded by the duo of riders Paulo Gonçalves (Portugal) and Kevin Benavides (Argentina). This time round, however, for the Desafío Ruta 40 the squad will wheel out the full arsenal of five riders including Joan Barreda (Spain), Michael Metge (France) and Ricky Brabec (USA). All of the riders will be armed with the Honda CRF450 RALLY with a similar setup to the one likely to feature in the 2018 DakarRally.

 It shouldn’t be forgotten that Paulo Gonçalves (2015) and Kevin Benavides (2016) are the two most recent winners in the event. The Honda team dominated last year’s edition with a full podium lockout of Benavides, Barreda and Gonçalves. Additionally, Metge finished in fifth place in a hugely successful campaign that Monster Energy Honda Team will be seeking to replicate in the 2017 edition.

 The Desafío Ruta 40 is made up of five stages, getting underway in the city of San Juan, in the region of the same name and finishing in Villa Unión, in La Rioja. Tinogasta and Belén in Catamarca, will be the following locations for the start and finish of the timed specials. The final stages will play out in Tucumán: Tafí del Valle and the capital San Miguel de Tucumán.