Dakar 2018: Joan Pedrero one step closer to give Sherco-TVS solace after tough Dakar Rally

Joan Pedrero of Sherco-TVS took fifth place on the 13th and penultimate stage of the 2018 Dakar Rally and is placed 11th overall as the last remaining remaining rider from the Franco-Indian team. 

The Spaniard finished in the top five despite a fall or two on the 424km special stage that was a part of a 907km total stage that ran from San Juan to the rally's end point in Cordoba in Argentina. The 14th and final stage remains that will take the riders on a loop around the town of Cordoba itself and into some of the stages that are used for the World Rally Championship event that is held over there. 

Pedrero has been the sole representative for Sherco-TVS since Aravind KP's unfortunate retirement due to a broken right ankle after a fall towards the end of stage five. Prior to that Adrian Metge was forced to retire as well after a crash on the rally's second stage. 

The 2018 Dakar Rally has been a particularly gruelling event that led to the retirement of Hero MotoSport's Joaquim Rodrigues due to a back injury as well as last year's overall winner Sam Sunderland of KTM and Honda's Joan Barreda, one of the main contenders for victory this year.