The curse of Sébastien Loeb in Dakar continues. The Frenchman had an accident this Tuesday and when he arrived at the bivouac, it happened to him Carlos Sainz the previous day. His car had a problem very similar to the Spanish one, as MD learned, and in the precedent of Laia Sanz and from Madrid, the FIA forced the pilot gap to leave the Dakar after stage 3 due to damage to his safety arch Dacia, on the right side of the front anti-roll bar, that of the co-pilot, as was the case with Sainz and Cruz.
However, the team may appeal this decision, something that is not yet known if it will happen. Although according to reports in the Al Henakiyah bivouac press room, Loeb himself asked the team not to appeal the decision.
According to the FIA statement, “The representatives of the competitor recognized that there was damage to the safety arch, although they did not consider that this damage would affect safety and they ensured that the level of safety after the accident did not change compared to before”. In the same statement it was indicated that the FIA technical delegate considered that “it is not safe to allow the competitor to continue the event”.
In 2016 the 9-time champion of World Rally Championship He came to the toughest test in the world, everyone thought he would make history with some crowns and it wouldn’t take long to achieve them. The pilot Alsatian (February 26, 1974, Haguenau, France) knew he had to adapt to the category but was fast at the start. However, the example of Carlos Sainzwho took 4 dakars to win his first sceptre, had to help him stay grounded and not get complacent. And since then, luck has always struck him.
The French, who became famous in many disciplines outside of World Rally Championshipalso in 24 Hours of Le Mans or RallyCrossachieved 5 podiums out of 8 possible before this test and has at least 28 stage wins, the sixth most successful in the entire history, with a massive record of 6 stage victories in a row in 2023. But to win the Dakar, it takes more than it should. This is the Dakar chose his winner. At any corner, at any kilometer, a trap or reliability failure can leave you. There was no stopping what happened to Loeb. Dakar hurt him. Also in 2025.
“it was silly”
In stage 3, the former gymnast fell into the test nets again. At km 12, when he was at full speed in the sandy terrain, an imperceptible pile of sand slowed him down. He lost control of his vehicle and rolled several times. He managed to continue driving but stopped again moments later, wrecking the car.
“I was hit on the side and we bounced to the other side and the car overturned. The wheels of the two wheels flew, but we only stopped for 5 minutes. We were not badly damaged, but after about 50 km, a steering tie rod broke. And even if it’s not serious, “It appears that the spare part was left inside the body at the rollover site.”he pointed out. Then, Cristina Gutiérrez came to give him that piece. But things are worse.
“Cristina stopped to give us one, but the front fan brokeso we drive at the speed of light cars throughout the stage. It’s not our day. Oh shit! But we have to move forward. We will see what happens, although the desire to win is complicated”he declared.
A long list of problems
The Dacia rider lost an hour and finally had to retire, unable to return to the track to attack as he did in 2023, finding the impossible after puncturing that time on stage 2 and recovering to 2nd. This time, he will have to pack his bags, leaving Nasser was alone as a big favorite against the leader, Lategan, and other contenders in a very close race.
Loeb’s list of Dakar problems and accidents is long. “You’re unlucky,” Carlos told him last year. when he won the game after breaking a front triangle in the penultimate stage.
That’s a trend that’s been repeated since his debut in 2016, when he had trouble with his car’s turbo and lost any options when it flipped over. He came close in 2017, but after his mechanical problems in stage 4 and the perforation of stage 11, only him 5 minutes and 13 seconds from the winner, Stéphane Peterhansel. “We didn’t have much luck in the whole rally”he said at that time. He’s still gone. And there were 9 attempts.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
