Honda rider Paulo Goncalves of Portugal reacts as his motorcycle burns during the fifth stage of the Dakar Rally between the cities of Chilecito and Tucuman in San Miguel de Tucuman, Argentina, on January 9, 2014. #

Robby Gordon and Kellon Walch of the United States for Hummer Team Speed Energy drive off the official podium in front of The National Flag Memorial (Monumento Nacional a la Bandera) during the 2014 Dakar Rally Previews, on January 4, 2014 in Rosario, Argentina. #

Days before his death, Belgium's Eric Palante, on the podium ramp during the symbolic start of the 2014 Argentina-Bolivia-Chile Dakar Rally in Rosario, Argentina, on January 4, 2014. According to a statement from Dakar organizers, Palante's body was found on the morning of January 10, 2014 along the route of the Dakar Rally between Chilecito and San Miguel de Tucuman, Argentina. #

Yamaha rider Marcos Patronelli of Argentina talks to other competitors before the start of the third stage in San Juan, Argentina, on January 7, 2014. Patronelli abandoned the race after a serious accident when the Argentine driver avoided almost certain death by leaping off his quad when it plummeted into a deep ravine. #

Mechanics work on the car of Christian Lavieille and Jean-Pierre Garcin of France for the Haval Rally Team during Day 4 of the 2014 Dakar Rally, on January 8, 2014 in Chilecito, Argentina. #

Iveco truck driver Adua Jo of France and co-pilots Marco Alcayna Ferran and Marc Torres, both of Spain, race in the fourth stage of the Dakar Rally between San Juan and Chilecito, Argentina, on January 8, 2014. #

Dakar Rally medical assistance members provide aid to Suzuki rider Gilbert Escale of Spain after he was injured in a crash during the fifth stage, on January 9, 2014. #

Dakar Rally director Etienne Lavigne turns away from the cloud of dust kicked up as KTM rider Riaan Van Niekerk of South Africa rides past him during the fifth stage from Chilecito to Tucuman, on January 9, 2014. #

Rally Director Etienne Lavigne (left) helps pilots Bauyrzhan Issabayev and Gabdulla Ashimov of Kazakhstan as their car burns during the second stage from San Luis to San Rafael, on January 6, 2014. #

(1 of 5) Honda rider Paulo Goncalves of Portugal lifts his burning motorcycle trying to put out the fire engulfing it during the fifth stage of the Dakar Rally between the cities of Chilecito and Tucuman, on January 9, 2014. #

(5 of 5) Paulo Goncalves weeps as he watches his motorbike go up in flames during the fifth stage of the Dakar Rally. Goncalves had to drop out after the incident, his earliest exit in his eighth Dakar. #

After falling from his motorbike, KTM rider Stephane Hamard of France gets help pushing his bike out of a mud puddle during the seventh stage of the Dakar Rally between the cities of Salta, Argentina and Uyuni, Bolivia, on January 12, 2014. #

Bolivian President Evo Morales celebrates on the podium with Speedbrain rider Juan Carlos Salvatierra of Bolivia at the end of the Stage 7, in Uyuni, on January 12, 2014. #

Sunset on the Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flat, located in Bolivia near the crest of the Andes, where competitors of the Dakar Rally arrived for the eight stage of the competition, on January 11, 2014. #

A woman poses next to a giant mining truck at the entrance of the Dakar Rally camp in Calama, Chile, on January 13, 2014. The truck operates in copper mines near the city. #

Victor Manuel Gallegos Lozic of Chile for Honda Tamarugal Racing XC Rally Team competes in stage 8 of the 2014 Dakar Rally near the Salar de Uyuni, on January 13, 2014. #