Rally Raid
Dakar Daily: Peterhansel and Price seal the deal
All the latest from the 2016 Dakar Rally, including exclusive video, interviews and blogs.
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So close to the end…
Team Peugeot Total celebrates a successful Dakar
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Cars: Record man Peterhansel makes it 12 Dakar wins on a special day for Peugeot
Peugeot enjoyed a day to remember and one that'll last long in the memory.
Sébastien Loeb rounded off his debut at the race with a stage win, but more significantly the day ended in a first Dakar win for the French manufacturer since 1990 and a 12th title for legendStéphane Peterhansel.
Loeb withstood a double-pronged Mini attack from MikkoHirvonen and Nasser Al-Attiyah, who rounded out the top three, and a 13th-placed stage finish for Peterhansel was more than enough to seal the crown thanks to the huge lead with which he'd come into the final day.
The Frenchman, who has now won the car category six times, was more than half-an-hour ahead of 2015 champion Al-Attiyah when the drivers arrived in Rosario. Giniel de Villiers took the final podium place, just ahead of Dakar first-timer Hirvonen.
"It's extraordinary. The pressure was very high, but we came through. Some of my wins count more than others, but this one's definitely in the top three. It's too early to think about the future," said Peterhansel.
One thing’s for sure, getting the same number of victories on a bike and in a car was the last big goal in my career. Now that it’s done, I don’t think there are many things left to motivate me.
Loeb's first experience of the event, which saw him take four stage wins, ended with the nine-times WRC champion ninth overall but well-equipped with knowledge for another attempt. Brit Harry Hunt's first go at the Dakar ended well also, as he scored a top-ten finish.
"We were very competitive overall, both the car and us. We ran into some trouble in the stages with navigation, but now we know what we've got to work on.
It leaves you wanting more, even if you’ve suffered.
Final standings after Stage 13
- Stéphane Peterhansel (FRA), Peugeot, 45h 22m 10s
- Nasser Al-Attiyah (QAT), Mini, +34m 58s
- Giniel de Villiers (RSA), Toyota, +1h 2m 47s
- Mikko Hirvonen (FIN), Mini, +1h 5m 18s
- Leeroy Poulter (RSA), Toyota, +1h 30m 43s
- Nani Roma (ESP), Mini, +1h 41m 6s
- Cyril Despres (FRA), Peugeot, +1h 49m 4s
- Vladimir Vasilyev (RUS), Toyota, +2h 1m 45s
- Sébastien Loeb (FRA), Peugeot, +2h 22m 9s
- Harry Hunt (GBR), Mini, +3h 11m 30s
Stéphane Peterhansel’s running out of fingers!
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Tweet of the Day
The struggle is very real for the riders who compete in the Dakar without full factory support. This short video, featuring British rider Chris Cork,shows the extreme determination of those who take part, and the highs and lows they can encounter along the way.
Bikes: Price is crowned Australia’s first Dakar champion
Toby Price won his first Dakar in only his second attempt at the prestigious event, with a carefully-ridden fourth place finish on Stage 13 more than enough to seal overall victory by 40 minutes.
I don’t know what to say, I don’t know what to think... I’m in shock, This is incredible for my family, my friends and my fans back in Australia! I hope this is just the start, to win again. It won’t be easy, so I’ve got to savour this victory.
With the dust settled on the final day, and Price crowned, the final standings saw fellow KTM rider Svitko second, and Quintanilla's fantastic ride on Saturday pulled him into third, just ahead of Benavides.
Final standings after Stage 13
- Toby Price (AUS), KTM, 48h 9m 15s
- Stefan Svitko (SVK), KTM, +39m 41s
- Pablo Quintanilla (CHI), Husqvarna, +48m 48s
- Kevin Benavides (ARG), Honda, +54m 47s
- Helder Rodrigues (POR), Yamaha, +55m 44s
- Adrien van Beveren (FRA), Yamaha, +1h 46m 29s
- Antoine Méo (FRA), KTM, +1h 56m 47s
- Gerard Farres Guell (ESP), KTM, +2h 1m
- Ricky Brabec (USA), Honda, +2h 11m 27s
- Armand Monleon (ESP), KTM, +3h 27m 49s
Number One! Toby Price's first Dakar victory
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
The Dakar comes to Europe, in mini
Ever wanted to get your hands on a Dakar car or truck? Roger van Driel might be the man you need to contact.
The Dutchman, who lives near Eindhoven, makes mini replicas of the vehicles that compete in the Dakar Rally. RedBull.com caught up with him to find out how he does it.
3 min
Roger van Driel Dakar Model Maker
Meet Dakar Model Maker Roger van Driel.
Quads: Marcos Patronelli seals a hat-trick
The Argentine rider and his brother Alejandro were separated by just five minutes and 23 seconds at the top of the standings, in what had been a gripping finale. They finished sixth and eighth respectively on the stage.
I’m clearly over the moon. We had a spectacular Dakar. We were unlucky at the beginning, but everything went better from there. I’m rather emotional about the result. It was a tough edition. My team and my brother have also won this Dakar. It’s really amazing!
Brian Baragwanath won his third stage to confirm his place on the final podium, scoring the Stage 13 victory ahead of GiulianoGiordana and SergeiKaryakin. Russian rider Karyakin took fourth overall, and Jeremias Gonzalez Ferioli was fifth on his Dakar debut. The 19-year-old has caught the attention throughout.
Previous winners Rafal Sonik (2015) and IgnacioCasale (2014) didn't make the finish of an unforgiving 2016 edition.
Final standings after Stage 13
- Marcos Patronelli (ARG), Yamaha, 58h 47m 41s
- Alejandro Patronelli (ARG), Yamaha, +5m 23s
- Brian Baragwanath (RSA), Yamaha, +1h 41m 53s
- Sergei Karyakin (RUS), Yamaha, +1h 44m 25s
- Jeremias Gonzalez Ferioli (ARG), Yamaha, +2h 2m 8s
- Walter Nosiglia (BOL), Honda, +4h 26m 10s
- Alexis Hernandez (PER), Yamaha, +6h 33m 44s
- Sebastian Palma (CHI), Yamaha, +8h 15m 33s
- Santiago Hansen (ARG), Honda, +8h 41m 23s
- Camelia Liparoti (FRA), Yamaha, +10h 41m 7s
Third time quad winner Marcos Patronelli
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: De Rooy superior for second Dakar success
Dutchman Gerard de Rooy won the trucks by more than an hour when the final times were counted up, his second victory to follow his 2012 trophy.
The stage was won by his compatriot Hans Stacey, with PieterVersluis and EduardNikolaev inside the top three.
Joining De Rooy on the podium in Rosario were last year's winner AyratMardeev and local hero FedericoVillagra.
Final standings after Stage 13
- Gerard de Rooy (NED), IVECO, 44h 42m 3s
- Ayrat Mardeev (RUS), KAMAZ, +1h 10m 27s
- Federico Villagra (ARG), IVECO, +1h 40m 55s
- Hans Stacey (NED), MAN, +2h 23m 1s
- Ton van Genugten (NED), IVECO, +2h 30m 59s
- Pascal de Baar (NED), RENAULT, +3h 4m 7s
- Eduard Nikolaev (RUS), KAMAZ, +3h 39m 23s
- Jaroslav Valtr (CZE), TATRA, +3h 54m 30s
- Pieter Versluis (NED), MAN, +3h 57m 52s
- Artur Ardavichus (KAZ), TATRA, +5h 1m 6s
Stage 12: Price and Peterhansel on course
The penultimate stage of the 2016 Dakar Rally, and if the competitors thought that getting closer to the finish line meant things would ease off, they were gravely mistaken.
Stage 12, at some 900km in length, was the longest of this year’s event, with a special lasting 481km (the trucks were the only category to “get off lightly” with a special of 267km). Concentration was key on this stage, as even a little mistake could result in the ultimate frustration of making it this far but not finishing...
Cyril Despres and Julio Federico Quiroga
© Eric Vargiolu/DPPI/Red Bull Content Pool
Cars: Mikko Hirvonen strikes for victory
Mikko Hirvonen won the second-to-last stage on his Dakar debut to lead a Mini one-two with Nasser Al-Attiyah.
The Finn swooped at the end of the stage as he and Al-Attiyah both launched themselves past Leeroy Poulter, who led for the most part but suffered disappointment at the very end.
Poulter was out in front for much of the stage, after he and Toyota team-mate Giniel de Villiers set off on a hot pace. Al-Attiyah and De Villiers had been scrapping for second position as Poulter led, but the order was shaken up towards the end as the Mini pairing went hard.
Stéphane Peterhansel, who started the stage with a handsome lead overall, took it easy, as did his Peugeot team-mates Sébastien Loeb and Cyril Despres. The trio finished eighth (Loeb), ninth (Despres) and tenth (Peterhansel) respectively to set up for what Peterhansel hopes will be his 12th Dakar title.
Peterhansel makes a splash on Stage 12
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Step inside a Peugeot 2008 DKR with Cyril Despres
If you want to know what the inside of a top-level Dakar car is like, and what everything does, then look no further than Cyril Despres who welcomed us into the inner sanctum of his Team Peugeot Total 2008 DKR:
3 min
Step inside a Peugeot 2008DKR with Cyril Despres
Cyril Despres shares the confined space of the Dakar Rally racing Peugeot 2008DKR.
Bikes: Hélder Rodrigues wins the stage, as Toby Price gets within touching distance of glory
The Portuguese rider went on the attack early on, finding Honda man KevinBenavides his main rival for the victory. The pair battled it out, and at one point it looked like PabloQuintanilla was going to be in the mix too.
However, Quintanilla dropped off later in the stage (he finished sixth after leading at one point) and Rodrigues responded well to Benavides getting the better of the early timings to power through for the win.
Price holds a commanding lead over StefanSvitko heading into the final stage.
Toby Price is poised for Dakar victory
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
A secure support network
Making it to the end of the Dakar is an achievement in itself, but getting there in a top position after one of the most gruelling motorsport events is something special.
Who provides the support? KTM’s Logistics chief Markus Kettler takes us on a guided tour of a Dakar Rally support truck to show us:
11 min
Markus Kettler KTM Factory support Truck Tour
KTM's Logistics chief Markus Kettler takes us on a guided tour of a Dakar Rally support truck.
Quads: Patronelli brothers set for showdown
Young talent Jeremias González Ferioli looked like he was on course for his first Dakar stage win, but Marcos Patronelli blazed a trail to overtake his fellow countryman and seal his third win of the 2016 race. Walter Nosiglia and Sergei Karyakin also got past González Ferioli to get onto the podium.
Alejandro Patronelli was fifth, as he lost four minutes on his sibling in the chase for the Dakar crown.
Marcos Patronelli had led for most of the Dakar
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: Pieter Versluis notches up second stage win
Pieter Versluis led home FedericoVillagra and HansStacey for a Stage 12 victory, his second of the 2016 race, but the main upshot of the stage was that GerarddeRooy remains a long way ahead at the top of the overall leaderboard.
Versluis looked comfortable throughout the stage, beating Villagra by just over three minutes. De Rooy, who was fifth but only five minutes down on the winner, increased his advantage over AyratMardeev slightly to put himself in pole position for Dakar glory on Saturday.
Tweet of the Day
Adrien van Beveren continues to pull out the best wheelies by far…
Stage 11: Al-Attiyah and Méo take Stage 11 wins
More sand was the order of the day on Stage 11, as the Dakar moved on from La Rioja to San Juan. Before we find out what happened though, let’s take a look at some of the best action from recent days:
2 min
Catch up with the latest best of the Dakar
More exhilarating action from the 2016 Dakar Rally.
Carlos Sainz forced into an early Dakar finish
As the competitors lined up ready for another draining day’s pursuit, there was one notable absentee. Carlos Sainz, who had led the overall standings in cars heading into Stage 10, was forced to retire from this year’s Dakar overnight after his Peugeot 2008 DKR was deemed beyond repair. Find out more here:
Cars: Al-Attiyah chips away at Peterhansel’s lead
Nasser Al-Attiyah interrupted Peugeot’s dominance of the cars this year for a second time in four stages with victory, as he shaved nearly ten minutes off Stéphane Peterhansel’s overall lead. The Frenchman still has a commanding 50-minute advantage at the top.
Peterhansel came fourth, with Sébastien Loeb putting a couple of difficult stages behind him with second place. Loeb looked to be in for another frustrating day when he was pulled up just a few kilometres short of the finish with a mechanical problem, but he got a tow to the end of the timed section.
Peterhansel and Loeb had battled one another for the lead before Al-Attiyah picked up the pace to come through for first place. MikkoHirvonen put in a great drive to take third, a minute ahead of Peterhansel.
Nasser Al-Attiyah at the end of a tough day
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Watch Loeb’s Peugeot being rebuilt
As one Team Peugeot Total driver was forced out of the 2016 Dakar, another was brought right back into it thanks to an incredible job by his crew.
Sébastien Loeb rolled his 2008 DKR on Stage 8 and the car came back to base looking very much the worse for wear. However, a slick late-night operation got him back out the following day, and here’s a time-lapse video of the mechanics at work:
1 min
Sébastien Loeb's Peugeot 2008 DKR is rebuilt
Sébastien Loeb's Team Peugeot Total crew rebuild his Peugeot 2008 DKR car after a big crash.
Bikes: Méo makes progress with victory, Gonçalves out
Méo battled with both Price and Pablo Quintanilla during the 431km special, eventually beating off both in another great spectacle. In finishing second, Price extended his overall lead, and Méo moved into the top three – at the expense of Quintanilla – thanks to his result. By finishing just over 12 minutes off Méo, previous stage winner StefanSvitko lost ground in his chase of Price.
“It's amazing,” said Méo after picking up the win. “I made a little mistake and crashed before the first refuelling. After the refuelling it was very tough for navigation but I did a very good job. I'm very happy with the victory today.”
Gonçalves started the day off by receiving a 50-minute penalty, that was administered retrospectively for Stage 9. The Portuguese was pulled up for his lengthy stop at the second checkpoint on Tuesday, where he had been trying to fix his damaged Honda. His day went from bad to worse when he crashed 118km into the special, requiring medical assistance.
Antoine Méo's had an impressive rookie Dakar
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Turning it up with Price and Viladoms
1 min
Toby Price and Jordi Viladoms practice turns
KTM riders Toby Price and Jordi Viladoms practice turning ahead of the 2016 Dakar Rally.
Quads: Patronellis sandwich Baragwanath to set up intense finale
Just eight seconds separate brothers Marcos – in first overall – and Alejandro after 11 stages, an incredible feat and an appetising situation ahead of the final two days.
Baragwanath remains third, but at nearly two hours off the lead.
Tooling up for the lonely ride
Out in the middle of nowhere with no assistance, how do the riders get themselves back on course?
Every KTM rider carries a special toolkit with which they are able to make running repairs to their bike. KTM Factory Racing chief technician Stefan Huber talks us through the selection:
1 min
Essential tools a KTM rider carries at the Dakar
KTM Factory Racing chief technician Stefan Huber shows us the tool kit carried by the top riders.
Trucks: Nikolaev makes it a treble
Eduard Nikolaev won his third stage of 2016 with a five-minute margin of victory over Pieter Versluis, as Ton van Genugten beat AyratMardeev to third.
Overall leader Gerard de Rooy finished sixth, but it did little damage to his advantage over Mardeev in the standings. The Dutchman still leads by over an hour heading into the final two stages.
Federico Villagra slipped further out of touch of De Rooy, losing another 13 minutes on his rival.
Stage 10: Stéphane Peterhansel gets back on top
Following a delayed start due to the previous night’s thunderstorms, Stage 10 got under way on Wednesday with the top 10 cars, top 10 bikes and top five trucks all starting at the same time for added excitement.
The route across Argentina, from Belén to La Rioja, contained the longest dune section of the event, off-piste for the most part, so it was another day of intense navigation and careful progress…
Cars: Peterhansel returns to summit as Sainz hopes end
It was a bittersweet day for Team Peugeot Total as Stéphane Peterhansel led home a 1-2 with Cyril Despres, but Carlos Sainz saw his hopes of victory disappear.
The Spaniard, who led the overall standings at the start of the day, came in for some rotten luck, first picking up a flat tyre before getting stuck in sand and then grinding to a halt in the dunes 213km into the special.
Peterhansel set off extremely fast, and was leading the stage early on. Despres found some great form too to finish five minutes behind, and Toyota driver VladimirVasilyev was a top-three finisher. Nani Roma was the highest-placed Mini driver for the day in fourth, and after a couple of sobering days, Sébastien Loeb was fifth.
Despite his win, Peterhansel wasn’t without issues of his own on Stage 10.
“We had a terrible start to the special. We got lost at 32km and wandered around for at least 15 minutes. I blew a fuse because I thought I'd lost everything,” he revealed.
We took risks and threw caution to the wind. We pushed very hard because we knew today was the decisive stage.
“I had a flat tyre and started screaming my head off, I was a bit out of my mind today. However, when we got going, we were fast. We took a huge leap in the overall.”
Stéphane Peterhansel and Ton van Genugten race!
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Svitko revels in first stage win
Stefan Svitko experienced the joy of his first-ever Dakar stage win, as he shaved a small amount off the overall lead of Toby Price.
Price came in third – behind KevinBenavides – in a stage that only saw a spread of 5m 47s across the three fastest finishers, despite its incredibly tough course of nearly four hours’ intense riding. Price had led out fastest, but Svitko responded brilliantly.
“It was a key stage. I took it easy because my motorcycle struggled in the heat yesterday. I also focused on navigating,” said Price at the finish line. “I can ride a bit more defensively now, no need to attack to gain time like I did yesterday.
I've got some margin, but no guarantee. Anything can happen.
Antoine Méo blitzes a trail
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
How to prepare for the dunes?
With sand dunes playing a part in today’s action, how best to get ready for the stretches of terrain on the Dakar that contain sandy routes? Practise in them, of course.
2 min
Jordi Viladoms and Toby Price tackle dunes
KTM riders Toby Price and Jordi Viladoms take on some sand dunes in Spain, ready for the 2016 Dakar.
Quads: Victory for Baragwanath, but Patronellis still way out front
Winning by just 29s, Baragwanath sealed a super result after a close Stage 10, and by coming home second and third respectively Marcos and Alejandro distanced themselves further at the summit.
Full pelt from Marcos Patronelli
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
A privateer’s challenge
Riding as a privateer at the Dakar is a challenge that few can muster the courage to undertake. Jurgen van den Goorbergh doesn’t have any fears when it comes to taking it on though.
The Dutchman, who had a career spanning 11 seasons in the MotoGP World Championship through the '90s and early 2000s, has competed in the Dakar as a motorcyclist, solo car driver, and truck navigator prior to the 2016 race. Impressive credentials.
This year he’s back on two wheels, riding a KTM Rally 450 in the Malles Moto category, therefore without an assistance crew. So, it’s important Van den Goorbergh knows his way around his machine, and he’s given us a tour of it here:
3 min
Up close with a Dakar privateer's KTM bike
Privateer Jurgen Van Den Goorbergh shows us the KTM that he has to ride and repair at the Dakar.
Trucks: De Baar wins, De Rooy strides into greater lead
Pascal de Baar delivered a stage win for Renault in the trucks, seeing off general leader Gerard de Rooy who in turn opened up a huge lead at the top after ten stages.
With Eduard Nikolaev – who started the day second overall – losing a crushing three-and-a-half hours on the stage, and FedericoVillagra almost an hour, De Rooy was able to extend his advantage to 1h 15m. Ayrat Mardeev moved into second, while Villagra holds onto a distant third.
Stage 9: Sainz surges to top
A loop around Belen, Stage 9 served up an intensely hot day for competitors and one which the race organisers ended early on safety grounds. Tricky dunes and hot temperatures pushed the limits beyond reasonable levels, and the marathon stage with its difficult navigational characteristics was brought to an early end.
Before we find out what happened on Stage 9, take in a quick recap of what’s happened in recent days on the 2016 Dakar:
2 min
All the action from Stages 5 to 8 of Dakar 2016
The best of the action from Stages 5 through to 8 of the 2016 Dakar Rally.
Cars: Resurgent Sainz takes win and lead
Carlos Sainz won the day and took the lead to boot after a shortened stage. The Spaniard missed out on victory by just 12 seconds the previous day, but hit back in style to wrestle the overall lead from his Team Peugeot Total colleague Stéphane Peterhansel.
On the curtailed outing it was a fresh-look podium with Mini drivers Erikvan Loon and MikkoHirvonen in the top three. Peterhansel placed seventh, and now trails Sainz by seven minutes in the fight for the Dakar crown.
Sébastien Loeb experienced a second straight day of harsh treatment by the Dakar, getting stuck in the sand on a few occasions and eventually trailing in more than an hour behind Sainz. He is now over two hours off the Spaniard in the overall standings.
How to get the perfect Dakar shot
Marcelo Maragni has been photographing the Dakar Rally ever since it started taking place in South America in 2009. The Brazilian told us his biggest adventure of the 2016 event so far in this special feature:
Whatever, or wherever, it takes: Marcelo Maragni
© Victor Eleutério
Bikes: Price on point again
Leader Toby Price secured consecutive stage wins with another display of masterful riding in difficult conditions.
The Australian led the field out after winning Stage 8, and his strong pace had him three minutes ahead by the first checkpoint. He’d more than doubled that by the time he got to the second checkpoint, after pushing hard to make the most of his high rhythm.
Paulo Gonçalves punctured his radiator on a second straight day of frustration, and StefanSvitko was third but lost 10 minutes on the leader. The Slovak did move up to second overall though, as Gonçalves slipped out of touch with the leaders.
Toby Price is now the man to beat in the bikes
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Altitude: How does it affect the competitors?
Back on Stage 5, this year’s Dakar hit peak altitude at 4,600m, and there are still some heady heights to come on the route that remains. British magazine Coach produced a short – and timely – article that explains exactly what happens to the body when being physically exerted in such conditions. Click here to read.
At around 4,600m above sea level, “pulmonary artery pressure increases in an effort to oxygenate the blood. Blood flow is prioritised to supply the brain, heart and lungs. With more blood being pumped through the arteries to the brain, headaches are common.”
That’s extreme – and gives context to this tweet from Peugeot Sport of oxygen canisters – and the competitors won’t be rising that high again before the conclusion of the race, but they’ll still be averaging around 1,000m and will hit 2,000m on Stage 10, which means they can expect this:
“Above 1,830m the body exhales and perspires twice as much moisture as at sea level, meaning you get dehydrated quicker.”
Gruelling!
Quads: The Patronelli show rolls on as Copetti wins
Pablo Copetti won the stage in the quads as the Patronelli brothers again both finished inside the top three to strengthen their hold on the category.
Just 90 seconds separated the top three in the shortened stage, as Marcos’s lead at the top was cut almost in half to just over a minute by sibling Alejandro, setting up a nice battle between the two for top honours. They’re 40 minutes clear of AlexisHernandez.
Marcos Patronelli holds a slim lead in the quads
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: De Rooy firms up top spot
Gerard de Rooy enjoyed a hassle-free victory as his footing at the top of the overall leaderboard was improved to nearly half-an-hour.
The Dutchman beat off competition from TonvanGenugten and AndriyKarginov, as his gap to Eduard Nikolaev was vastly increased.
Tweet of the Day
Paulo Gonçalves had a rough Stage 8 on Monday, which included this heavy fall. His toughness was underlined by the fact it was just his bike which sustained damage and not him. The Portuguese rider got up and rode on!
Stage 8: Price on top as Loeb’s hopes fade
The route took those still standing (or riding/driving) onto Belen, as the second half of the Dakar kicked-off. It also brought the first dune sections of this year's race, which added extra navigational pressure. Read on to find out how things panned out.
Hands on fans: The spirit of the Dakar
One of the great things about the Dakar is how close to the action fans can get. They meet their heroes, they see the machines at extremely close quarters, and in some cases they even help competitors when they get stuck.
Here's a selection of some of the best images of the spirit of the Dakar, as realised by those who welcome it to their country:
Nicolas Monnin gets a push from some fans
© [unknown]
Do you know the way to Buenos Aires?
© [unknown]
Franco Picco gets a warm welcome
© [unknown]
Not an everyday sight!
© [unknown]
In keeping with all things in the spirit of the race, here's a video update from Dutchman Tom Coronel, who was forced to retire from this year's race due to a mechanical issue. We included a clip of him getting a tow in Saturday's post (see further down), and here's an update from the man himself on the extraordinary kindness he received from some locals.
Cars: Al-Attiyah hits back as Loeb hits trouble
Nasser Al-Attiyah scored Mini's first stage win as the 2015 champion fought back to beat Carlos Sainz in a nail-biting finish, while Sébastien Loeb lost the overall lead.
Al-Attiyah was fastest through the checkpoints and it looked like the Qatari wouldn't be challenged for the victory, but Sainz made a surge, overtaking late on before Al-Attiyah struck back to win by just 12 seconds.
Stéphane Peterhansel took the overall lead by finishing, within 30 seconds of Al-Attiyah. His taking of P1 was aided by a day to forget for Loeb.
The Frenchman had run in second for much of the stage but became stuck in sand on the second part of the special. Quickly back on track, he then rolled his Peugeot 2008 DKR at around 510km, before repairing the vehicle with co-driver Daniel Elena and coming in more than an hour behind Al-Attiyah.
Cyril Despres struck a fine rhythm and was fourth for the day, and MikkoHirvonen also enjoyed a productive stage coming in fifth.
Loeb's misfortune means he is now just over an hour off his team-mate Peterhansel in the general standings.
"In a rio there was a dip and I didn't see it, so we arrived, fell in and it threw the car off balance and we rolled. We broke a lot of things on the car. We had to change two wheels and change the transmission so, for sure, we lost a lot of time.
It’s finished for overall victory. I still have to take the experience. We came here to get experience first and foremost.
Find out six things you probably didn't know about the event.
Nasser Al-Attiyah took charge of Stage 8
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Price strikes hard
Picking up his fourth stage win, Toby Price took the overall lead in the process as he laid down the law.
Price's win by more than five minutes meant he leapfrogged Gonçalves, and StefanSvitko found himself a further two minutes off the lead by the end of the day.
"For sure this is another important part of the Dakar now," said the Australian. "Having the marathon stage, we've got to make sure on the first day that we don't do anything silly and break the bike or damage the bike in any way because it makes the second day a whole lot worse.
We’ve just got to make sure we get through and look after ourselves those two days.
Toby Price took the overall lead
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: De Rooy strikes back
Gerard de Rooy took back the lead of the truck category with his second stage win, displacing PieterVersluis at the top.
De Rooy fended off Kamaz pair Eduard Nikolaev and AndreyKarginov, and finished just short of 20 minutes faster than Versluis to shake things up.
Nikolaev is now up to second behind De Rooy. HansStacey and AyratMardeev have work to do to catch the top three.
Find out what makes Kamaz team boss and seven-times Dakar winner Vladimir Chagin tick.
2 min
Dakar Rally: KAMAZ Masters charge into action
The most successful truck squad in the event’s history: the Kamaz team returns to Dakar action.
Quads: Patronelli brothers do it again
A day off didn't take any sharpness out of the Patronelli siblings, as Marcos led Alejandro in a 1–2 for the Yamaha pair.
With victory by more than five minutes, Marcos took the overall lead off his brother, while AlexisHernandez climbed back into the top three by following them across the line on the podium.
LucasBonetto followed up his stage win from Saturday with a top-four finish.
Marcos Patronelli kicks up some gravel
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Tweet of the day
It's good to see a competitor as eager and excited to get back out on his bike as Toby Price was after a day off!
Stage 7: Sainz and Meo take first stage wins
Two-time WRC world champion Carlos Sainz won the final stage before rest day while nine-time WRC champion Sébastien Loeb retook the lead of the Dakar Rally on Saturday.
The race across the border from Bolivia back to Argentina saw a dominant Loeb leading the charge, opening up a two-minute lead on his team-mates. But a turbo problem slowed his progress and Sainz, having slipped past Stéphane Peterhansel in the morning, capitalised to finish the stage 56secs ahead of the Frenchman.
“After the downer on the first day, this is a good result,” said Sainz. “We had to stop on the first day and we were almost knocked out of the race. Since then we've pushed hard to catch up and get a win. We've done that now and our strategy from here on is, as always, to keep it up!”
2015 champion Nasser Al-Attiyah split the Peugeots with his MINI, getting past overnight leader Stéphane Peterhansel to take third place and depriving the French team of another 1-2-3 finish.
Although Peterhansel lost the lead and was five seconds off the third-place finish, odds are that M. Dakar was keeping his eye on next week’s longer and more technically demanding stages and resisted the temptation to push his Peugeot DKR 2008 too hard.
Also celebrating was another rookie: Mikko Hirvonen, who edged out 2009 Dakar champion Giniel de Villiers to take fifth place overall. Meanwhile Cyril Despres enjoyed a change in fortune, setting the sixth-fastest time on the stage.
Sainz made up for his start with a win on stage 7
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Sébastien Loeb retook the overall lead on Stage 7
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Nasser Al-Attiyah is up to fourth overall
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Related
Tragedy strikes the Dakar
The 38th Dakar was marred by tragedy after a 63-year-old Bolivian man was killed after he was hit by Frenchman Lionel Baud's vehicle during the seventh stage.
"The organisation's medical service could only confirm, unfortunately, the death of the person involved," said organisers ASO in a statement.
Antoine Meo on his way to winning Stage 7
© Marcelo Maragni / Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Meo on top but it’s all over for Barreda and Walkner
Running third overall at the start of the day, Walkner fell heavily in the morning, breaking his thighbone, which brings a disappointing end to a promising race.
Joan Barreda wasone of the pre-race favourites, but 'Bang-Bang' lost five hours to engine problems on yesterday’s Stage Six and couldn’t even take the start in Uyuni.
Paulo Gonçalves retains the overall lead. He lost more than 10 minutes pausing to help the stricken Walkner, who was eventually airlifted away. But at the finish line, the stewards restored Goncalves's time to put the Portuguese star back on top.
Matthias Walkner in his motorhome
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
After seven stages, Toby Price was in second place
© Marcelo Maragni / Red Bull Content Pool
Paulo Goncalves
© Honda Racing
Joan Barreda
© Honda Racing
Quads: Patronelli brothers stay top of the class
Marcos Patronelli in action at the Dakar
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
The Patronelli siblings head into rest day with a comfortable lead in the quads with Alejandro and Marcos running in first and second place with one stage win apiece.
Third-placed Lucas Bonetto brought an end to a troubled week by claiming his first stage victory of the 2016 and a first win on a Honda ATV.
Bonetto, who sits three and a half hours behind rally leader Alejandro Patronelli after a troubled first week of the rally, was just sixth-quickest at the first waypoint – but managed to storm to the top of the timesheets by the end of the first stint.
Argentinians are dominating the quads as Pablo Copetti (Yamaha) finished second to Walter Nosiglia who put another Honda in the top three.
Eduard Nikolaev won his second stage of the Dakar
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: The Russians are coming
Peter Versluis has the overall lead at the halfway stage of the Dakar 2016 but Kamaz are looming as they head into a second week whose stages promise to play more to the Russian giants’ strengths. Eduard Nikolaev led the way for Kamaz, taking his second stage win in three days. He looked to have found his rhythm heading to the first checkpoint but then began losing ground. By the fifth stage along the Bolivia-Argentina border, he was running as low as fifth place, before getting back on track.
Defending champion Ayrat Mardeev complete a double for Kamaz, finishing less than a minute behind Nikolaev.
It was a good day for Versluis who finished third, seizing the overall lead more than five minutes ahead of his compatriot Gerard de Rooy.
Hoondert Rally team co-driver Jac Gillis
© Thomas Butler for Redbull.com
Take a tour around a Dakar truck
For a change of pace, we decided we'd like to see what it's like inside aDakar Rally racing truck, and who better to be our guide than Jac Gillis, navigator and co-driver of the Hoondert Rally Team.
Stage Six of the Dakar proved a bumpy ride for the privateers. Gillis and mechanic Wilko Hoefnagels were suffering headaches and nausea due to the high altitude, the road book didn't seem to quite match the route, and the thin Bolivian air meant the heavy DAF couldn't match the more powerful trucks for speed.
"Jac had a splitting headache and Wilko was so sick that he didn't dare open his mouth to say anything," said team leader and driver Adwin Hoondert. "And after we took a heavy bump from a hole in the road, I decided not to trust the road book anymore and eased back.
It added up to a loss of six places on the 295km stage as the team reached Uyuni 21st having left in 15th place, but Hoondert remains upbeat. "The truck and my men are worth more to me so getting them back in one piece is a good result."
Take a look inside the truck in the video below and connect with the Hoondert Rally Team on Facebook.
5 min
A guided tour of a Hoondert Team Dakar Daf
Hoondert team mechanic Jac Gillis takes us on a guided tour of his Dakar racing machine.
Riding the crazy train
Getting a tow from the sweeper truckis usually vital for getting your Dakar back on track but not for quad racer Tom Coronel, who ended up with a faceful of dirt. Unfortunately the racing driver and Dutch TV commentator's Dakar Rally has also now bitten the dust after mechanical failure.
Home from home
Stage 6: Peterhansel takes overall lead
There was continued altitude to deal with too on the route around Uyuni, Bolivia, and with varying terrain and continual changes in pace it was another relentless day of battling.
Cars: Peterhansel takes the lead with big Stage 6 win
After picking up his third stage win on Thursday and opening up a small gap over team-mate Stéphane Peterhansel, Sébastien Loeb saw his advantage in the general classification overhauled by his fellow Frenchman after a superb Stage 6 drive by Peterhansel.
The 11-times Dakar winner was fastest by the first checkpoint, and didn’t let up as he took the stage win by just over eight minutes ahead of Loeb, who came in fourth. Loeb encountered two punctures, which cost him valuable time.
Carlos Sainz was again second on the day after another consummate drive by the Spaniard. What it meant for the overall standings was a new leader, as Peterhansel overtook Loeb to lead by nearly half a minute at almost halfway through the event.
Yazeed Al-Rajhi finished inside the top three for the day, just ahead of Loeb, while Nassser Al-Attiyah is now 15 minutes off the overall pace after coming in fifth. Giniel de Villiers’ hopes of reeling in the leaders also suffered a knockback, as the South African finished the stage ninth.
Stéphane Peterhansel took the overall lead
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Price picks up further momentum
Toby Price continued his winning form with another stage victory, leading home the bikes from Matthias Walkner and Paulo Gonçalves.
Other rider who had a bad day at the office included Ruben Faria, whose Dakar was ended prematurely by a crash and broken wrist, and IvanJakes who was forced to withdraw.
Price’s victory elevated him to second in the overall standings, as Gonçalves held onto the lead but by just 35 seconds. Walkner’s result improved his position too – he is now third and hot on the heels of the top two.
Watch Walkner discuss his KTM Rally 450 – which he’s competing on – in this exclusive video:
3 min
Matthias Walkner on his Red Bull Factory KTM 450
Red Bull KTM Factory rider Matthias Walkner discusses his bike and hopes for the 2016 Dakar Rally.
Quads: Patronelli brothers take control as Casale crashes out
With exhaustion levels reaching their peak on a long and tiring day, the quads also bore their share of casualties.
After a disaster on Thursday that saw him lose the overall lead due to mechanical problems, IgnacioCasale set off on Stage 6 on a mission. He looked well on the way to accomplishing it with a superb ride, but a crash at roughly 370km into the special resulted in a fractured collarbone and a forced withdrawal from this year’s race.
Yesterday’s overall leader AlexisHernandez lost almost half-an-hour on the stage, which allowed Alejandro Patronelli to take top position, with brother Marcos not far behind.
Marcos Patronelli made moves on Stage 6
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: Stacey takes stage win and overall lead
Hans Stacey took a late win over Gerard de Rooy on Stage 6 to move to the top of the overall leaderboard in the trucks.
De Rooy had led at the final checkpoint, but Stacey managed to overhaul him for a victory by a narrow seven-second margin. PieterVersluis kept himself in the mix with third place, which helped him stay within range of Stacey.
Ninth place for FedericoVillagra cost him the lead of the category, as he slipped to third. The previous day’s winner Eduard Nikolaev was the highest finishing KAMAZ in fourth. 2015 winner AyratMardeev is 12 minutes off the lead pace.
Matthias Walkner flxes the KTM around a corner
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
From a competitor’s perspective
“It was a good day today. I saw nobody today, sometimes I just saw dust. I did see Seb on the last 20 kilometres before the end. He had a puncture and I overtook him, but during the entire day I was alone, trying to remain completely focused on the track, because it was a really long stage.
Since the beginning we've only had stages with tracks. There have been no dunes and no soft sand, so a lot of things can still happen and the car is still young, so we will see.
I had a puncture first, then I had to do almost 80 kilometres with the accelerator blocked at full power, so I had to control it with a switch and it was really complicated to drive like that.
Finally, I got another puncture and we had to change a second wheel. It was a complicated day. Hopefully, it will be better over the next days. For us, it was important to increase the lead as much as possible. Finally we lost first place, but there is still a long way to go. The problem will be solved and it will be better.
“It wasn't a bad day at all. I'm actually pretty happy. I led for the whole course today and made the tracks. It's the first time I've done that, which I'm pretty stoked about. It didn't start off in the best way. Around 22 kilometres there were a couple of cows stuck in the sand. I went to go around one of them but it pulled in front of me and I hit it. So it wasn't the best start to the race.
The pace of the first week we've had so far has been up there pretty high. As long as we minimise the mistakes, we should be pretty good.
Stage 5: Sébastien Loeb in stunning form again at Dakar
Read on to find out what happened on Stage 5, and to check out more exclusive content from RedBull.com.
Sébastien Loeb was on fire again on Stage 5
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Cars: It’s official, Loeb loves the Dakar
Have you heard the one about Sébastien Loeb winning a stage on his Dakar debut? Of course you have, because he's done it twice already. The Frenchman drove his Team Peugeot Total 2008 DKR to a third win in five stages with another superior display, seemingly unaffected by the increasingly intense demands of Stage 5.
The previous day's Peugeot 1–2–3 was repeated in a different order, as Carlos Sainz again placed second on the timesheet, with Stéphane Peterhansel third. Nasser Al-Attiyah came in just behind in fourth.
Loeb maintains his lead of the general classification, stretching his advantage over Peterhansel to almost eight minutes, while Sainz's form has been rewarded with entry into the top three.
As successful as the day was for the trio of Peugeot drivers, their team-mate Cyril Despres suffered disappointment as he lost more than an hour with an electrical issue.
2 min
Team South Africa in action
Dakar champion Giniel De Villiers puts his Toyota Hi-Lux to the test ready for the Dakar Rally.
Bikes: Price on point
Toby Price was the day's hero who dealt best with the dizzying altitude, as he notched his second stage win of this year's race. Yesterday's winner Paulo Gonçalves led the riders out for the day but eventually finished in 12th, as Price took early charge and led from the early checkpoints right through to the finish.
Watch the best of the action so far in this video:
2 min
Action from the opening stages of Dakar 2016
The best of the action from the early stages of the 2016 Dakar Rally.
Quads: All change at the top as Hernandez takes lead
A second stage win on the bounce for AlexisHernandez sent the Peruvian to the top of the overall leaderboard in the quads, on an unforgiving day that saw a number of riders come undone.
IgnacioCasale, who led the general classification at the start of the day, looked on course for a stage victory but an engine problem brought him to standstill, while defending champion RafalSonik also encountered mechanical issues that ruined his stage.
Hernandez beat BrianBaragwanath and AlejandroPatronelli to the win to take first position, and Brazilian MarceloMedeiros – who had started the day second overall – was forced to withdraw after breaking a collarbone in a fall. Casale did make it to the finish of the stage eventually, in 29th, but plummeted to 15th overall.
Eduard Nikolaev battles the terrain
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: Nikolaev prevails
After a tussle for the lead of the stage that lasted until the very end, KAMAZ driver Eduard Nikolaev saw off the challenge of MartinKolomy to win.
FedericoVillagra’s third place, coupled with PieterVersluis’ sixth-placed result on the stage, took Villagra into the overall lead. His advantage over Versluis is slim however, at just five seconds.
Helder Rodrigues makes a splash on Stage 5
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
From a competitor’s perspective
A gruelling day reviewed by those who made it through!
"It was a good day. I pushed really hard from the start. Daniel did a great job with the notes, he was just perfect, so absolutely nothing bad to say. I was really happy with the stage.
"We had some very high altitude today too. We are okay. Yesterday I tried to manage the car in preparation for the mountain stage. Today it was the second stage and I had absolutely no problems with the car, so I tried to push harder and I got the result.
Tomorrow may be more difficult. It's got some navigation like today, but today it was ok, so we will see tomorrow how we can manage that.
"This marathon stage was definitely difficult. Today was a little bit tricky with the navigation. I had to stay on top of the game. I caught a couple of other guys and got in some dust. I made a couple of little errors in the end there, because I was a little too worried to take my eyes off the road. It was a pretty crazy track. All in all, we're stoked. I didn't expect to be that far ahead for the day."
We've got another long day tomorrow and we'll see how we do. Today is only day five. We've got another seven or so stages to go and it's a long way. Anything can happen between now and then.
It was a really difficult marathon day. Yesterday was a big day and again today was a big day with higher altitude, so I've got a bit of a headache. In the end I'm happy because the bike was riding really well during these two marathon days. I think my time is also good. I finished without any problems, so this is good and we'll see what happens tomorrow.
Price admits he almost fell asleep in the saddle
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Tweet of the day
Little doubt over the severity of the altitude demands placed on competitors during Stage 5…
Stage 4: Stéphane Peterhansel leads a Peugeot surge
Stéphane Peterhansel led a Peugeot 1-2-3
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Cars: Peterhansel leads a Peugeot 1-2-3
Stéphane Peterhansel picked up his first stage win of the 2016 Dakar, but more notably the 66th of his career at the event. The 11-times winner now has 33 stage victories each in the motorcycle and car categories, after beating Team Peugeot Total colleague Carlos Sainz by a mere 11 seconds on Stage 4.
The Spaniard was closely followed on the timesheet by Sébastien Loeb in third, as the Frenchman’s extraordinary debut performance continued following his consecutive stage wins on the two previous days. Nasser Al-Attiyah, making up ground as he attempts to defend his title, was just under five minutes off Peterhansel’s pace, and Cyril Despres made it four Peugeot 2008 DKRs in the top five.
Loeb holds onto the overall lead as Peterhansel moved up to second. Al-Attiyah is up to third, at the expense of Giniel de Villiers who dropped to sixth overall.
Check out our Team Peugeot Total blog, with exclusive content on the team:
Caught out by a time penalty again, Joan Barreda
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Barreda repeats previous day’s mistake as Gonçalves capitalises
The day’s happenings cost Barreda in the overall standings too, as he remained in third place. Gonçalves jumped to the head of the pack, as Benavides stayed in second. Faria’s strong display lifted him to fifth.
Want to know how a 'normal' day at the Dakar goes for a competitor? Check out our infographic on a typical timetable:
Marcos Patronelli fought hard on Stage 4
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Quads: Hernandez triumphs
The previous day’s winner, BrianBaragwanath, struggled to 24th, as he dropped out of the top three. Casale almost tripled his advantage at the head of the rankings, and AlejandroPatronelli – brother of Marcos – climbed to third.
A demanding marathon stage for the trucks
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Trucks: De Rooy wins stage as Versluis assumes lead
Gerard de Rooy took the Stage 4 win in the trucks, ahead of PieterVersluis and HansStacey, but he was unable to improve his general standing of fourth. 2015 champion Ayrat Mardeev completed the top five on the marathon stage.
There was a change at the top of the leaderboard, as Versluis took over from Stacey, while FedericoVillagra held onto third.
Continuing his climb on Stage 4 was Al-Attiyah
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
From a competitor’s perspective
Reaction from some of the riders and drivers following the conclusion of Stage 4.
Our engines have been fine-tuned to work much better at altitude this year. It helps us drive properly, and the car’s well balanced. It's the first Dakar special I’ve won for Peugeot, so it's nice. It's just the third day of racing. We had a good special, with no navigational mistakes and a high pace from the beginning. Our work is paying off.
“We’ve had another good day. Daniel’s work with the road book was perfect because there were absolutely no navigation mistakes for us today. This allowed me to focus on keeping a good rhythm. I’m happy with our stage, we didn’t take any big risks out there because this is the first half of a marathon stage.
Another stage win would have been nice, but it was more important to stick to a safe rhythm and that’s what we did.
It was a good day, bringing the bike home in one piece was crucial. I’m happy for me and Honda. It was my first marathon stage with a fast opening day. I rode near Benavides before the refuelling stop, but I made a slight mistake inside the controlled speed area and I lost some time. I attacked to close the gap and, in the end, I wasn't that far behind.
“I opened the road for the first time at the Dakar. I was a tad nervous and didn't want to make any mistakes. I kept my eyes on the road book. I think I did all right. I found all the tracks and managed to set a high pace. Paulo [Gonçalves] joined me and we finished together.
The stage was fast, varied, stimulating and quite technical. I used a straightforward tactic: keeping my body and my bike in good shape because there won’t be any assistance tonight.
It’s the first day where I was able to ride at the speed I enjoy and maintain a good pace throughout the entire stage. After a few difficult days it was a relief to ride without problems. The altitude didn’t get to me today, but we climb a lot tomorrow so we’ll see then.
Tweet of the day
Frenchman Adrien van Beveren gave the heli-cam a very special display on his Yamaha…
Stage 3: Loeb on a roll with sensational win
Read on for news on what happened, exclusive content and video, and more...
Sébastien Loeb continued his incredible Dakar form
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Cars: Loeb doubles down with another stage win
Sébastien Loeb's incredible start to the 2016 Dakar – his first ever participation in the event – rolled on with back-to-back stage wins, after another effort which belied his relative inexperience of the race.
The Frenchman's start to his first ever Dakar has been captivating to say the least. He led out Stage 3 on Tuesday and didn't buckle under the pressure, instead finishing just under one and a half minutes ahead of Team Peugeot Total colleague Carlos Sainz.
Defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah had a much more positive day than the previous, coming in third, while Giniel de Villiers made up ground in fourth. Mikko Hirvonen was again impressive, less than three minutes off the stage winner, with Stéphane Peterhansel just a matter of seconds behind.
The result strengthened Loeb's hold over the general classification, while De Villiers rose to second at the expense of Peterhansel, who is now third.
Joan Barreda was handed a time penalty
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Antoine Meo had a solid Stage 3
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Matthias Walkner in action on Stage 3
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Svitko takes stage win after Barreda penalised and Price finds the going tough
The previous day's winner, Toby Price, struggled on the stage and came in 37th as he saw himself finish the day just under five minutes off Svitko's benchmark in the general classification.
Ever wondered if the Dakar is tougher on four wheels or two? Find out what five-times motorcycle winner and now Team Peugeot Total driver Cyril Despres thinks below.
Two-times Dakar winner Marcos Patronelli
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Quads: Baragwanath wins cracking battle
Brian Baragwanath wrestled the stage win from the hands of IgnacioCasale by just four seconds in a tightly-fought quad stage, but the 2014 winner retained the overall lead by a margin of just under four minutes. MarceloMedeiros came in third, and holds onto the same position overall at almost seven minutes behind Casale.
General Classification after Stage 31. Ignacio Casale (CHI), Yamaha, 7h 0m 40s2. Brian Baragwanath (RSA), Yamaha, +3m 56s3. Marcelo Medeiros (BRA), Yamaha, +6m 58s
Trucks: Kolomy comes out on top in curtailed special
Martin Kolomy took the stage win in the trucks after a landslide meant the special stage was ended at the second intermediate point. He was faster than overall leader Hans Stacey by 17 seconds, with FedericoVillagra third.
Stacey's lead at the top was cut to 26 seconds by Pieter Versluis, with Villagra displacing Gerard de Rooy in third.
Nasser Al-Attiyah made up some ground on Stage 3
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
As the riders and drivers with full support teams plough on at the front, what happens to those running on slimmer resources if they hit a problem?
The sweeper truck is a specially equipped unit that supplies emergency assistance to those who need it. Find out more in this exclusive video.
2 min
To the rescue: The Dakar rally sweeper team
When it all goes wrong at the Dakar, meet the men who come to the rescue.
From a competitor’s perspective
It was good, we had lot of fun on this stage – it was really nice. It looked like the times would be very close between the drivers, but I pushed hard.
"I'm enjoying the Dakar, it's been a two good days for me and the car is going very well. I have a good feel for this car, it's performing well and I'm enjoying it for now. At the moment I am enjoying these stages on the tracks, because I have a good feeling with this kind of road, but when we go into the desert, it will be something different with some long and hot stages, something I do not know very well, but we'll see."
"We caught a lot of rain, but it was OK, we didn't take any risks. I think we did a good job. I am surprised with Sébastien Loeb, he made a good time, but that's OK, the buggy is not easy to catch.
I think our performance is not bad, we see that the other teams like the Peugeot and Toyota are improving a lot. But there’s still a long way and we try to do our best.
"It's been a good day, we set off in seventh position after opening the stage yesterday. It was an easy special stage, especially for navigation. These days there's not much navigation, so the differences are very small.
At the end the most important thing is to stay among the front group and that’s it.
The stage today was quite good. I caught a rider in front me during the middle of the stage, because with the dust it was difficult to catch him. It took me half of the stage to catch him and after that I pushed. The stage was fun to ride, and I'm very happy to have a good result and to make up for my mistake on the first stage.
We’re trying to work out what the problem was with the GPS and stuff on the bike today, because it threw me off a little bit. But other than that we've stayed on two wheels and day three is done, so we're going to get ready for day four – it should be good!
Tweet of the day
Carlos Sainz finding the limits
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Stage 2: Price and Loeb in top Dakar form
Toby Price was on top form in Stage 2
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Bikes: Stage 2 Top Three
Australian rider Toby Price made clear his intentions of going all out for the victory with a narrow stage win, battling Ruben Faria throughout the special stage to eventually beat his Portuguese rival by 20 seconds. Stefan Svitko thought he had done enough to come in third, but a time penalty of one minute meant that Alain Duclos was promoted to the top three, with Svitko eventually fifth behind Matthias Walkner. There was a standout performance coming from Argentine KevinBenavides. The debutant was eighth-fastest.
Check out this exclusive video featuring super-slow-motion footage, in which Price gives his top tips on how to ride the Dakar.
2 min
Super Slo Mo: Toby Price on riding at the Dakar
Toby Price reveals how to ride at the Dakar in Super Slow Motion.
Cars: Stage 2 Top Three
On four wheels, Sébastien Loeb caused something of a sensation by taking the stage win in his Team Peugeot Total 2008 DKR. Few will have been surprised to see the nine-times WRC champion run at a competitive pace, but victory so early in his debut Dakar was a fantastic achievement.
Sébastien Loeb stormed to a first Dakar stage win
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Loeb led home a Peugeot one-two with Stéphane Peterhansel in second, and their team-mates Cyril Despres and Carlos Sainz placed seventh and 14th respectively. Another debutant, MikkoHirvonen, impressed in fifth, while defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah came home in eighth for the stage after getting stuck with a flat tyre.
Joan Barreda on the way to Termas de Río Hondo
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
Quads: Stage 2 Top Three
Ignacio Casale was the leading man in the quad category, racking up an early lead of just under four minutes over his closest rival. The 2014 winner was in charge from start to finish on Monday, while little separated Brian Baragwanath and AlejandroPatronelli in second and third. Reigning champion Rafal Sonik was sixth.
Related
Trucks: Stage 2 Top Three
Hans Stacey was fastest in the trucks as the Dutchman set off to add a second title to his 2007 achievement. The MAN driver was hotly pursued by his fellow countrymen PieterVersluis and GerardDeRooy, as the trio overcame fast starter FedericoVillagra, who had led at the first checkpoint and finished the stage in fifth. Defending champion Ayrat Mardeev was eighth, four and a half minutes off Stacey's pace.
Ayrat Mardeev pushes his KAMAZ
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
A competitor’s point of view
I was stuck in the mud at the middle of the stage and was lucky to get out. I got stuck for maybe two minutes, something like that. At that moment I didn't believe I would get out like I did. Finally, I managed to join the field again and resume the stage, but it was really on the limit so I was a bit afraid. Apart from that, I had a good stage with no problems, trying to find a good rhythm and it was OK.
"The car is really performing well and I'm really happy with the result at the moment, so we have to continue. Tomorrow we will open the road and that will be another story, but at the moment it's going perfectly."
It was a long day in the saddle for sure, but it’s started well for us. We'll have a good clean of the bike tonight because there was a bit of mud out there. Then we'll be kicking things off tomorrow. It will be a little more difficult, but we'll take our time with it to make sure we make all the right calls.
"Now at last the race has really got underway and it's going well for us with the Peugeots at the front. Before the race we had no real comparison with where we are compared to the others, now we have a better idea, which is encouraging. But of course there's still a very long way to go."
– Stéphane Peterhansel
Find out what five items Peterhansel can't leave home for the Dakar without here.
Tweet of the day
Came from Sébastien Loeb, who greeted his stage victory with the following comment which translated as: "A little surprised at [getting] best time of the day, but it's positive. The #Peugeot2008DKR is on it, even on the winding trails #Dakar2016".
Stage 1: Thunderstorms cut short start of Dakar 2016
Sebastien Loeb battles through tough conditions
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
The forecast rain arrived in force to render some of the route from Rosario to Villa Carlos Paz in Argentina unfit for purpose. Thunderstorms in the area of the special forced organisers to delay the start, after parts of the stage had become too engulfed with water.
The rain did ease off, but conditions remained unsuitable and, just over two hours after the first motorcycle rider was originally scheduled to start, Race Director Etienne Lavigne confirmed that the day’s special had been cancelled.
Joan Barreda at the close of the cancelled Stage 1
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Aside from the poor conditions, the fact that helicopters required to guarantee the safety of the participants were unable to fly was a key factor in the decision.
The field made its way to Villa Carlos Paz via motorway, to reconvene at the bivouac in preparation for tomorrow’s Stage 2, which heads to Termas de Río Hondo.
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A competitor’s point of view
Here’s how some of the top competitors in the cars evaluated a tricky start to proceedings:
“Actually it has worked out quite well for us. I’m very happy to start fourth on the road for the long stage tomorrow, as it means that we are in a good position there to push and try to win the stage.
A lot can happen tomorrow, and I hope there are no more cancellations.
“We saw big rivers and big water by the side of the highway: really a lot of water, so I think it was a good decision to cancel the stage. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s stage, but there are a lot of rivers to cross on it. I really don’t know what tomorrow could bring.”
– Marek Dabrowski
“Everyone is itching to get started now, so we’ll see what we can do tomorrow. The car felt very good on the prologue, even though we weren’t pushing to the maximum, and we have a good starting position.”
– Giniel de Villiers
Loeb is guided into Villa Carlos Paz
© Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
And on two wheels, there were no complaints at the decision taken by the organisers to cancel the stage:
“The weather was really bad today and the only thing to do was to call off the stage. A lot of the tracks were completely overflowing with water and impossible to pass.
If we had been racing on this stage today I think anything could have happened. It looks like more rain is forecast for tomorrow so we’ll see how it goes.
“Today was a long rather than a difficult day: a lot of hours on the bike, but it's the same for everyone. Until now everything has been fine: the bike feels good and I’m happy. It’s sure that the KTMs will be hard to beat here, but it’s not impossible to do it. At some point, it will happen.”
– Hélder Rodrigues
Today’s action followed Saturday’s prologue, which was run to determine the starting order for Stage 1.
Matthias Walkner in action on the prologue
© Marcelo Maragni/Red Bull Content Pool
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