Two parallel accidents by Carlos Sainz and Stephane Peterhansel leave the path open for Al-Attiyah to overall victory Barreda resists near the head of the motorcycle race
A very typical expression of kings, “this is how they put them on Felipe II (or Fernando VII)”, could be used for the Dakar, where the Spanish monarchs were replaced by a prince from Qatar. Nasser Al-Attiyah is hopelessly on track to conquer the 2023 Dakar after preparing the sixth leg of the world’s toughest raid with his direct rivals.
In a day shortened by the heavy rains that have hit the area, which have also changed this weekend’s stages 7 and 8, turning them into a ‘semi-marathon’ (there is only 2 hours of assistance in the camp), the Audi of Stéphane Peterhansel and Carlos Sainz have been kept out of contention for the title this year. In the case of the fourteen-time rally champion definitive, as he is forced to retire due to the medical evacuation of his co-driver, Edouard Boulanger. Both the Frenchman and the Spaniard had two parallel accidents in the same area, around kilometer 212, after jumping over a dune. On landing, Sainz broke his car’s front suspension and tore off a wheel, and while Peterhansel’s case was similar, the physical impact on his co-driver was critical. Although his car was apparently better, it was impossible to continue due to the navigator’s pain, which had to be treated on the spot.
Sainz had to wait several hours for help to arrive, repair the damage and try to resume the march, although it didn’t matter: his chances of victory were gone. With nine stages to go, the time to cut was too long to wait for luck to suddenly turn. At the age of 61, and as the ‘run-run’ of a final retirement draws nearer and nearer, this has been a setback very hard to digest for the ‘Matador’, who in this Dakar not only because of his age or his candidacy, but also by the presence of his son, the Ferrari driver in Formula 1, who almost cost him a penalty. The FIA investigated whether Sainz Jr. to close the door of his father’s Audi was considered illegal help and therefore punishable, but the judges did not want to break the competition in this way.
Everything that happened on this fateful King’s Day for Audi benefited an Al-Attiyah who took a stage victory that leaves a taste for much more. Sebastien Loeb, who is a world away in the overall standings, was second at three and a half minutes, but his deficit in the raids standings is too great. Al-Attiyah, a four-time Dakar winner, has more than an hour to spare against second-placed Henk Lategan, who is also his team-mate (and squire) in the factory Toyota team and is unlikely to give him a hard time. in case of a possible problem. A catastrophic breakdown or accident is the only thing that can prevent you from winning your fifth ‘Touareg’.
Even a mid-rival like local Yazeed Al-Rajhi, battling for the Overdrive structure (with semi-official Toyotas), won’t be an enemy for Al-Attiyah, as a few miles past the black zone ahead of Audi itself was out of the race . Easier, impossible for Nasser.
Despite the shock in his body from the serious accident he had at the end of stage 5, Joan Barreda continues to fight for victory on the bike. With a little more caution, the Valencian finished fourth, just over two and a half minutes behind the day’s winner Luciano Benavides, whose bonuses allowed him to snatch the partial victory from his teammate Skyler Howes, who continues to lead the overall standings with three a minute and a half margin over Toby Price. Barreda is still off the podium, 11 minutes behind the American from Husqvarna, but ironically he is the first Honda in the standings. After being left out of the official team, the man from Torreblanca shows the pride that made him leader of the squad not long ago and for now he is the team’s first sword.
This Saturday’s day is 333 km instead of the planned 398 and that would be the route on Sunday, starting from the Riyadh bivouac, which will be the base of this Dakar until Tuesday. What would be the longest stage of this Dakar, the Al Duwadimi loop, remains for Sunday with 345 timed kilometers and not the planned 473. Al-Attiyah will have to cover less distance on his way to his overall victory.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
