Despres won his third stage of the year at Dakar today.

The 11th special of the Personal Argentina-Chile Dakar 2011 turned out be an important one for Cyril Despres.

The Frenchman’s objective was to regain ground on the bike category leader Marc Coma. With 2:12 lost by the Catalan to the Frenchman, in the end, the day could have been worse for Coma, and Despres will have to settle for a third special stage triumph this year.

Coma’s lead in the general standings now stands at almost 16 minutes.

370 kilometres was the distance of the timed section on offer to Cyril Despres to try and buck the trend after his severe setback the day before.

Setting off in the position of pursuer, two minutes after his rival, the Frenchman logically gained ground during the first part of the special, totalling 1:31 after 224km, a good score, but not sufficient to worry the Catalan.

Far from the battle for the title, ‘Chaleco’ Lopez took advantage of his fourth placed starting position to follow the tracks of the two leading bikers and concentrate on riding his race. The Chilean put in the best time on arrival at the neutralised zone, with a good lead of 1:29 over Despres.

The second part of the special was the same as the first but for one detail.

Despres set off 29 seconds behind Coma this time, before gradually catching up with him and overtaking him thirty kilometres from the finish.

Behind him, however, Lopez suffered a moment’s absence, misreading a note in his road book. This navigation error cost him victory.

As a result, Despres triumphed, taking his third stage victory since the start of the rally and the 26th in his career on the Dakar. The KTM rider is now one behind Jordi Arcarons and just six behind the record holder in the bike category, Stephane Peterhansel.

Despres regained over two minutes on the Spaniard, though this was not a big blow for Coma, who rode a controlled race and stuck to the tail of Despres once he was overtaken. He conserves a significant advantage of 15:59 over his best enemy.

Lopez remains on the third step of the virtual podium, but more than 49 minutes behind the leader, and even gained time on the day’s fourth placed rider, Helder Rodrigues.

Of the Aussie contenders, GHR Honda’s Jacob Smith continued his good form with 17th on Stage 11, moving him up to 37th overall. BMW rider Simon Pavey ended the stage 85th, now ranked 72nd for the Dakar.

2011 Dakar Rally
Stage 11 Results
1. Cyril Despres, France, KTM
2. Marc Coma, Spain, KTM
3. Chaleco Lopez, Chile, Aprilia
4. Helder Rodrigues, Portugal, Yamaha
5. Alain Duclos, France, Aprilia
17. Jacob Smith, Australia, Honda
85. Simon Pavey, Australia, BMW

Standings after Stage 11
1. Marc Coma, Spain, KTM
2. Cyril Despres, France, KTM
3. Chaleco Lopez, Chile, Aprilia
4. Helder Rodrigues, Portugal, Yamaha
5. Juan Pedrero, Spain, KTM
37. Jacob Smith, Australia, Honda
72. Simon Pavey, Australia, BMW