"Time has flown by"
Crew facts
- Ignacio Cornejo will lead the Chilean contingent in the motorcycle category in his 11th Dakar Rally, following the recent retitrement of Pablo Quintanilla.
- After his first two Dakar appearances, ‘Nacho’ Cornejo jumped into the spotlight days before the 2018 edition—after having decided to withdraw for financial reasons—when he received a call from Honda Team to replace the injured Paulo Gonçalves. ‘Nacho’ made the most of the opportunity with an impeccable performance, finishing in 10th place overall.
- He has six top ten Dakar finishes to his name, with his best result being P4 in 2020 with two stage wins, including the final timed sector.
- The 2021 edition was his most difficult yet. ‘Nacho’ was leading the general classification and was second in stage 10, one minute behind Ricky Brabec, when he crashed heavily at km 252 of the special stage. Although he completed the stage, he and the medical team decided it was best for him to retire. In 2022, he suffered a setback in the opening stage but recovered with two stage victories. He was extremely fast in the second week and finished sixth.
- In 2024, Nacho displayed his potential with three stage victories, although mechanical issues relegated him to P6 in the general classification.
- In the previous edition, his first with Hero, crashes by teammates Sebastian Buhler and Ross Branch affected the team's performance. It was Nacho's responsibility to get the bike to the finish line. He wasn't entirely satisfied with P7, as he knew he could have finished higher up the order.
- Cornejo has just won a stage of the Morocco Rally for the first time. His P6 in Rally GP this season, along with the Hero's competitiveness, gives him every chance to challenge for the podium.
Ambition
J.I.C.F.: "Last year's Dakar was my first with Hero. It wasn't easy for the team. My two teammates (Bühler and Branch) crashed out of the rally, so I had to take the lead and get the bike to the finish line. There were stages where I was in the top three or top five, but the poor strategy on the first two days really affected my final result. That's why I wasn't satisfied with P7 because we knew we could have finished higher up.
Then the season was average. We had some low points in Portugal and South Africa. We weren't where we wanted to be there, but in the rest of the rounds, we were very competitive: Abu Dhabi was good, and in the last one, I won a stage of the Morocco Rally for the first time. There were ups and downs, but we are working to develop the bike in the right direction.
As for the Hero, we made several changes in Portugal and Morocco. There are no significant changes in the run-up to the Dakar. Just training and hard work in the two months leading up to it.
It will be my 11th Dakar. Time has flown by. Many seasons in official teams, fighting at the front, winning stages. We are still very hungry, and we know we can achieve great things. I approach the Dakar with responsibility, leading the Chileans in the bike category. We have an incredible legacy from the late Carlo De Gavardo, Chaleco López, Pablo Quintanilla - now retired - and the idea is to continue in the same vein and at the same level they have achieved. We've done pretty well, but we want to bring good results back home, and we're working towards that.
