DAKAR Stage 6 Part 1
FOCUS
Dunes galore were on the programme in the Empty Quarter, through which the competitors are passing
during two days as part of a new stage format: 48 hours chrono. Over a special totalling 547 kilometres
for the FIA crews and 625 km for the FIM riders, each competitor had to stop at 4 pm at one of the seven
bivouacs dotted along the route. In the Empty Quarter, the conditions are nothing like anywhere else
and the amount of soft sand to be swallowed up under the wheels has multiple consequences, for
example on fuel consumption, which the competitors must know how to gauge. Unfortunately, that was
something that Pablo Quintanilla was unable to do. The most advanced riders and drivers on the stage
map will not necessarily be tomorrow’s winners, but so far the dunes have been tamed in the best
possible way by Adrien Van Beveren on his bike and Carlos Sainz in his car. They respectively have 112
km and 149 km left in order to complete this loop back to Shubaytah as winners.
OUTLINE
When racing through the dunes, the ability to climb and to get over them is not the be all and end all. It
may seem obvious, but it’s essential to take mechanical aspects into account as well, and that starts
with a basic parameter: managing how much fuel you have. Pablo Quintanilla, who ran out of fuel ten
kilometres before the first refuelling point, paid a hefty price for his negligence and, after 424 km, has
dropped down the rankings by more than 1 hour and 40 minutes. Several of his team-mates on the
Honda team, for whom he will now be able to act as a water (or petrol!) carrier, were wiser as well as
more efficient and can still envisage triumphing in Yanbu, notably Ricky Brabec who is now the virtual
leader of the general rankings with an advantage of 2’48’’ over Ross Branch. However, the same can
be said for Nacho Cornejo and Adrien Van Beveren, the day’s quickest rider up to point F, located
after 537 kilometres, where ten bikers will be spending the night tonight. The car category also held a
number of plot twists in store and it was firstly Yazeed Al Rajhi, due to his need for speed, who lost
command of the general rankings, and can now kiss goodbye to triumph on the 2024 edition, after 51
km (see A crushing blow). Much further along the route of the special, Stéphane Peterhansel fell foul
of mechanical problems that bitterly punctuate the careers of even the greatest champions: following a
simple puncture, he had to stop his Audi after 256 km but the failure of his hydraulic system prevented
rapid repairs and also led to his power steering giving up the ghost. With already 2 hours and 8 minutes
lost, it has been a tough day for ‘Mister Dakar’! Nevertheless, the Audi clan acquitted themselves with
honour on the first part of the 48 HR Chrono stage, because Carlos Sainz put himself in an ideal position
to resume racing tomorrow morning (see Performance of the day) and Mattias Ekström achieved the
second-best intermediate time, putting him in second place in the general rankings, around 16 minutes
behind his road captain. The armada of RS Q e-Tron cars can still keep their hopes up in spite of
Peterhansel’s problems, though they will be hoping that tomorrow’s sand will not clog up the progress
of their smooth-running machine, all the more so given that Nasser Al Attiyah and Sébastien Loeb,
who was slightly more discreet today, will be present and determined to keep them under pressure.
In the Challenger class, Eryk Goczał took advantage of the dunes to increase his lead over Mitch
Guthrie (who trails by 56 minutes in the virtual general rankings), whilst in the SSV category, the Polaris
drivers Florent Vayssade and Xavier de Soultrait enjoyed a profitable day, but will have to wait and
see how the very threatening João Ferreira, who finished the day at rest point C (after 347 km),
performs tomorrow on the second part of the stage. Finally, Martin Macík gained the upper hand over
Janus van Kasteren in the truck race, a category in which there are also 200 kilometres left to go
tomorrow for the majority of the favourites.
PERFORMANCE OF THE DAY
The gamble seems to have paid off for Carlos Sainz, who yesterday manoeuvred himself into the right
place to get away in good position and put in one of his customary performances on the Dakar. As the
17th car to start the day, the Spaniard was able to demonstrate the effectiveness of a driving style that
has remained intact since his days as world rally champion, and which has been adapted to the dunes
by almost twenty years‘ experience on the Dakar, since 2006 precisely. “El Matador”, a three-times
winner of the race, gained a lead of 4’31’’ over his team-mate Mattias Ekström and 5’19’’ over
Sébastien Loeb, which opens the door for him to a 43rd stage win on the Dakar and also the possibility
of reaching the rest day at the front of the race.
A CRUSHING BLOW
He assuredly looked to have what it takes to tackle the major stage in the Empty Quarter like a boss:
familiarity with the terrain, nearby to which he accomplished victory on the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge
last February; the status of general rankings leader, calmly achieved in among the rocks; and a starting
position, in 4th to be precise, which boded well for the big challenge of the 48 HR Chrono stage. Indeed,
it was not in the dunes where fate struck the hopes of Yazeed Al Rajhi, but in between two portions
separated by a large chott where he wanted to test the potential power of his Toyota Hilux. However,
being too greedy is a bad habit on the Dakar: at full speed, a clump of camel grass or a simple bump in
the terrain turned the tracks into a take-off strip for his car, which barrel-rolled, putting it immediately out
of service. The Saudi was taken back to the start of the special and has no guarantee of being able to
battle for more stages or help his Overdrive team colleagues from stage seven onwards, because his
badly damaged vehicle will have to comply with the technical and safety rules before being reintegrated
into the race after the rest day.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Stéphane Peterhansel: “I don’t know how we’re going to manage to pull through”
Stéphane Peterhansel had to deal with a number of technical problems. He replied to questions on
stopping after 256 km to repair a puncture: “We had a puncture and the hydraulic jack system started
playing up. We don’t have a hand jack so we don’t know how we’re going to change the wheel. With the
damage to the hydraulic system, I’ve lost the power steering and I don’t know how we’re going to
manage to pull through”
ERGEBNISSE / Results – BIKES
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 42 |
(FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 07H 57′ 29“ |
2 | 2 |
(AUS) TOBY PRICE
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 08H 01′ 42“ |
3 | 9 |
(USA) RICKY BRABEC
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 08H 02′ 31“ |
4 | 5 |
(AUS) DANIEL SANDERS
|
RED BULL GASGAS FACTORY RACING | 08H 04′ 24“ |
5 | 46 |
(BWA) ROSS BRANCH
|
HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 08H 07′ 09“ |
6 | 1 |
(ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES
|
HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING | 08H 08′ 08“ |
7 | 47 |
(ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 08H 13′ 34“ |
8 | 142 |
(SVK) STEFAN SVITKO
|
SLONAFT RALLY TEAM | 08H 18′ 48“ |
9 | 11 | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 08H 19′ 18“ | |
10 | 76 |
(FRA) JEANLOUP LEPAN
|
DUUST RALLY TEAM | 08H 23′ 53“ |
OVERALL – BIKES
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 9 |
(USA) RICKY BRABEC
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 27H 11′ 21“ |
2 | 46 |
(BWA) ROSS BRANCH
|
HERO MOTOSPORTS TEAM RALLY | 27H 12′ 12“ |
3 | 42 |
(FRA) ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN
|
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 27H 20′ 42“ |
4 | 11 | MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM | 27H 25′ 35“ | |
5 | 2 |
(AUS) TOBY PRICE
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 27H 38′ 21“ |
6 | 47 |
(ARG) KEVIN BENAVIDES
|
RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING | 27H 39′ 54“ |
7 | 5 |
(AUS) DANIEL SANDERS
|
RED BULL GASGAS FACTORY RACING | 27H 47′ 11“ |
8 | 1 |
(ARG) LUCIANO BENAVIDES
|
HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING | 27H 58′ 47“ |
9 | 142 |
(SVK) STEFAN SVITKO
|
SLONAFT RALLY TEAM | 28H 19′ 03“ |
10 | 76 |
(FRA) JEANLOUP LEPAN
|
DUUST RALLY TEAM | 28H 43′ 03“ |
ERGEBNISSE / Results – Original by Motul
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 37 |
(BEL) JEROME MARTINY
|
ANQUETY MOTORSPORT | 09H 13′ 42“ |
2 | 96 |
(AUT) TOBIAS EBSTER
|
KINI RALLY RACING TEAM | 09H 14′ 05“ |
3 | 112 |
(ITA) GIOELE MEONI
|
DAKAR 4 DAKAR | 10H 18′ 26“ |
4 | 97 |
(ECU) JUAN PUGA
|
JP1 KEWS DAKAR RALLY TEAM | 10H 27′ 55“ |
5 | 74 |
(FRA) MICHAEL JACOBI
|
MÔLEAGRIFOREST / COMAS MOTOS | 11H 03′ 27“ |
6 | 82 |
(ESP) ALBERT MARTIN GARCIA
|
PEDREGA TEAM | 11H 09′ 29“ |
7 | 61 |
(CZE) DAVID PABISKA
|
SP MOTO BOHEMIA | 11H 09′ 55“ |
8 | 104 |
(FRA) JEREMIE GERBER
|
TLDRACING | 11H 37′ 01“ |
OVERALL – Original by Motul
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 96 |
(AUT) TOBIAS EBSTER
|
KINI RALLY RACING TEAM | 30H 42′ 43“ |
2 | 37 |
(BEL) JEROME MARTINY
|
ANQUETY MOTORSPORT | 31H 57′ 05“ |
3 | 82 |
(ESP) ALBERT MARTIN GARCIA
|
PEDREGA TEAM | 34H 01′ 36“ |
4 | 112 |
(ITA) GIOELE MEONI
|
DAKAR 4 DAKAR | 35H 42′ 18“ |
5 | 61 |
(CZE) DAVID PABISKA
|
SP MOTO BOHEMIA | 35H 47′ 21“ |
6 | 97 |
(ECU) JUAN PUGA
|
JP1 KEWS DAKAR RALLY TEAM | 36H 20′ 53“ |
7 | 104 |
(FRA) JEREMIE GERBER
|
TLDRACING | 38H 17′ 43“ |
8 | 74 |
(FRA) MICHAEL JACOBI
|
MÔLEAGRIFOREST / COMAS MOTOS | 38H 31′ 30“ |
ERGEBNISSE / Results – CARS
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 203 |
(FRA) SEBASTIEN LOEB
|
BAHRAIN RAID XTREME | 07H 21′ 56“ |
2 | 204 |
(ESP) CARLOS SAINZ
|
TEAM AUDI SPORT | 07H 23′ 57“ |
3 | 207 |
(SWE) MATTIAS EKSTRÖM
|
TEAM AUDI SPORT | 07H 32′ 51“ |
4 | 206 |
(BRA) LUCAS MORAES
|
TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 07H 44′ 41“ |
5 | 302 |
(POL) ERYK GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 07H 50′ 44“ |
6 | 211 |
(FRA) GUERLAIN CHICHERIT
|
OVERDRIVE RACING | 07H 56′ 01“ |
7 | 208 |
(CZE) MARTIN PROKOP
|
ORLEN JIPOCAR TEAM | 07H 58′ 30“ |
8 | 209 |
(ZAF) GINIEL DE VILLIERS
|
TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 07H 59′ 00“ |
9 | 221 |
(BEL) GUILLAUME DE MEVIUS
|
OVERDRIVE RACING | 08H 03′ 24“ |
10 | 310 |
(POL) MICHAL GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 08H 06′ 29“ |
OVERALL – CARS
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 204 |
(ESP) CARLOS SAINZ
|
TEAM AUDI SPORT | 24H 59′ 32“ |
2 | 207 |
(SWE) MATTIAS EKSTRÖM
|
TEAM AUDI SPORT | 25H 19′ 53“ |
3 | 203 |
(FRA) SEBASTIEN LOEB
|
BAHRAIN RAID XTREME | 25H 29′ 03“ |
4 | 206 |
(BRA) LUCAS MORAES
|
TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 26H 03′ 32“ |
5 | 221 |
(BEL) GUILLAUME DE MEVIUS
|
OVERDRIVE RACING | 26H 09′ 19“ |
6 | 209 |
(ZAF) GINIEL DE VILLIERS
|
TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 26H 24′ 48“ |
7 | 208 |
(CZE) MARTIN PROKOP
|
ORLEN JIPOCAR TEAM | 26H 34′ 36“ |
8 | 212 |
(FRA) MATHIEU SERRADORI
|
CENTURY RACING FACTORY TEAM | 26H 51′ 52“ |
9 | 302 |
(POL) ERYK GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 26H 52′ 02“ |
10 | 243 |
(ZAF) GUY DAVID BOTTERILL
|
TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 26H 54′ 13“ |
ERGEBNISSE / Results – CHALLENGER
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 302 |
(POL) ERYK GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 07H 50′ 44“ |
2 | 310 |
(POL) MICHAL GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 08H 06′ 29“ |
3 | 306 | RED BULL OFF-ROAD JR TEAM USA BY BFG | 08H 09′ 40“ | |
4 | 301 |
(CHL) FRANCISCO LOPEZ CONTARDO
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 08H 13′ 04“ |
5 | 303 |
(USA) MITCHELL GUTHRIE
|
TAURUS FACTORY TEAM | 08H 13′ 16“ |
6 | 300 |
(LTU) ROKAS BACIUSKA
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 08H 14′ 06“ |
7 | 311 |
(SAU) SALEH ALSAIF
|
DARK HORSE TEAM | 08H 25′ 49“ |
8 | 312 |
(ARG) NICOLAS CAVIGLIASSO
|
TAURUS FACTORY TEAM | 08H 33′ 22“ |
9 | 305 |
(USA) AUSTIN JONES
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 08H 35′ 44“ |
10 | 336 |
(NLD) PAUL SPIERINGS
|
DAKARTEAM SPIERINGS | 08H 57′ 50“ |
OVERALL – CHALLENGER
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 302 |
(POL) ERYK GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 26H 52′ 02“ |
2 | 303 |
(USA) MITCHELL GUTHRIE
|
TAURUS FACTORY TEAM | 27H 54′ 20“ |
3 | 306 | RED BULL OFF-ROAD JR TEAM USA BY BFG | 28H 18′ 36“ | |
4 | 301 |
(CHL) FRANCISCO LOPEZ CONTARDO
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 28H 18′ 54“ |
5 | 305 |
(USA) AUSTIN JONES
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 28H 42′ 14“ |
6 | 310 |
(POL) MICHAL GOCZAL
|
ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM | 28H 57′ 00“ |
7 | 300 |
(LTU) ROKAS BACIUSKA
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 29H 12′ 15“ |
8 | 312 |
(ARG) NICOLAS CAVIGLIASSO
|
TAURUS FACTORY TEAM | 29H 33′ 57“ |
9 | 315 |
(PRT) RICARDO POREM
|
MMP | 30H 59′ 32“ |
10 | 311 |
(SAU) SALEH ALSAIF
|
DARK HORSE TEAM | 31H 27′ 27“ |
ERGEBNISSE / Results – SSV
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 411 |
(FRA) XAVIER DE SOULTRAIT
|
SEBASTIEN LOEB RACING – BARDAHL TEAM | 08H 25′ 10“ |
2 | 408 |
(SAU) YASIR SEAIDAN
|
MMP | 08H 26′ 15“ |
3 | 400 |
(PRT) JOÃO FERREIRA
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 08H 28′ 45“ |
4 | 419 |
(USA) SARA PRICE
|
SOUTH RACING CAN-AM | 08H 31′ 47“ |
5 | 405 |
(FRA) FLORENT VAYSSADE
|
SEBASTIEN LOEB RACING – BARDAHL TEAM | 08H 34′ 35“ |
6 | 420 |
(CHE) JEROME DE SADELEER
|
MMP | 09H 01′ 45“ |
7 | 402 |
(ESP) GERARD FARRES GUELL
|
SOUTH RACING CAN-AM | 09H 04′ 54“ |
8 | 409 |
(ECU) SEBASTIAN GUAYASAMIN
|
FN SPEED TEAM | 09H 08′ 20“ |
9 | 426 |
(LTU) EMILIJA GELAZNINKIENE
|
RENTWAY DAKAR TEAM | 10H 16′ 02“ |
10 | 404 |
(FRA) CLAUDE FOURNIER
|
MMP | 10H 24′ 19“ |
OVERALL – SSV
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 408 |
(SAU) YASIR SEAIDAN
|
MMP | 29H 50′ 16“ |
2 | 419 |
(USA) SARA PRICE
|
SOUTH RACING CAN-AM | 29H 58′ 24“ |
3 | 411 |
(FRA) XAVIER DE SOULTRAIT
|
SEBASTIEN LOEB RACING – BARDAHL TEAM | 30H 00′ 56“ |
4 | 400 |
(PRT) JOÃO FERREIRA
|
CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM | 30H 12′ 55“ |
5 | 420 |
(CHE) JEROME DE SADELEER
|
MMP | 30H 15′ 27“ |
6 | 409 |
(ECU) SEBASTIAN GUAYASAMIN
|
FN SPEED TEAM | 31H 22′ 31“ |
7 | 405 |
(FRA) FLORENT VAYSSADE
|
SEBASTIEN LOEB RACING – BARDAHL TEAM | 33H 42′ 12“ |
8 | 402 |
(ESP) GERARD FARRES GUELL
|
SOUTH RACING CAN-AM | 34H 25′ 19“ |
9 | 404 |
(FRA) CLAUDE FOURNIER
|
MMP | 35H 08′ 21“ |
10 | 426 |
(LTU) EMILIJA GELAZNINKIENE
|
RENTWAY DAKAR TEAM | 37H 12′ 53“ |
ERGEBNISSE / Results – TRUCKS
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 601 |
(CZE) MARTIN MACIK
|
MM TECHNOLOGY TEAM | 08H 35′ 53“ |
2 | 603 |
(NLD) MITCHEL VAN DEN BRINK
|
EUROL RALLYSPORT | 09H 41′ 34“ |
3 | 602 |
(CZE) ALES LOPRAIS
|
INSTAFOREX LOPRAIS PRAGA | 09H 48′ 33“ |
OVERALL – TRUCKS
POS. | N° | DRIVE-TEAM | TEAM | TIME |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 601 |
(CZE) MARTIN MACIK
|
MM TECHNOLOGY TEAM | 28H 59′ 18“ |
2 | 602 |
(CZE) ALES LOPRAIS
|
INSTAFOREX LOPRAIS PRAGA | 30H 16′ 00“ |
3 | 603 |
(NLD) MITCHEL VAN DEN BRINK
|
EUROL RALLYSPORT | 30H 49′ 17“ |
ERGEBNISSE / Results – CLASSIC
Coming soon…
OVERALL – CLASSIC
Coming soon…
FULL RESULTS / ALLE ERGEBNISSE: LINK
GALLERY STAGE 6 Part 1
Quelle / Source: DAKAR, A.S.O