2025 Dakar Rally Stage 11: Hero MotoSports’ Nacho Cornejo finishes 5th

Hero MotoSports Team Rally’s Jose Ignacio 'Nacho' Cornejo Florimo has continued his string of strong performances in Stage 11 of the 2025 Dakar Rally, finishing 5th after a delayed and shortened stage due to foggy weather conditions. This result keeps Cornejo securely in 7th place overall as the rally heads into its final stage tomorrow.

Stage 11, which was set to be 308km of timed special, was reduced to 152km after foggy conditions prevented helicopters from flying, delaying the start. Cornejo took full advantage of his favourable starting position, riding steadily through the dunes and clocking the 5th fastest time of the day. His strategic mindset, which saw him finish late yesterday to secure a better start today, paid off as he was able to take advantage of the tracks laid by riders who started early and finished 5th today.

“We’ve wrapped up Stage 11, which got off to an unexpected start due to heavy fog in the morning. The delayed start resulted in the stage being shortened to half, but we made the most of it. I had a fantastic ride, feeling increasingly comfortable on the bike as the days are progressing. We secured a strong 5th place finish today. Now, I'm eagerly looking forward to the final stage tomorrow,” said Cornejo.

As the Dakar Rally 2025 nears its conclusion, tomorrow’s grand finale will feature a compact 61km timed special and a 70km road section. Adding to the excitement, tomorrow we’ll see a reverse grid and a mass start where we will see competitors battle it out together, as the top 15 riders will begin together in a motocross-style start.