Intrepid Sanders battling injuries
AUSTRALIA’S Dakar Rally motorcycle leader Daniel Sanders has revealed he is battling injuries from last year’s devastating crash as he fights to maintain his lead after the fourth stage.
Sanders was headed for a podium finish in 2022 after two stage wins from the opening six legs before a crash left him with a fractured elbow and left wrist that ended his campaign.
The 28-year-old from Melbourne battled away to finish eighth in Wednesday’s stage, concerning fans by finishing more than 10 minutes behind stage winner Joan Barreda of Spain, and later revealed he
was battling pain from his injuries last year.
Sanders, winner of Tuesday’s stage, retains the overall lead, 3min 33sec ahead of America’s Skyler Howes, with Kevin Benavides of Argentina 4min 5sec adrift in third.
“I think for me now it’s just a case of trying to get some recovery and take it easy for the next few days because my arm is pretty sore already and the elbow isn’t 100 per cent,” said Sanders. “We’ll take it easy. It’s a long race. I’m just trying to calm myself down every day. I said to myself and the family and friends back home that after the year off I’ll be happy with a top 10.”
Barreda, on a Honda, timed 16 seconds faster than Chilean teammate Pablo Quintanilla, with the ultraconsistent Howes third, 1min 5sec off the pace, and Australia’s two-times former champ Toby Price fourth.
Price moved up to fifth in the classification rankings, just over seven minutes behind Sanders.
Howes’s compatriot Mason Klein was the big loser on two wheels. He led for most of the stage until a fuel intake problem 20km from the finish cost him dearly, losing 12 minutes.
As a result he dropped from second overall to sixth.
“I had to stop, take the tank off and pour it in the back,” he said. “Then I couldn’t get the skid plate bolt back in.
“I was getting very stressed. It’s pretty disappointing because the day was going so well, but at least we made it here.”
Rally legend Sebastien Loeb ended his two nightmare days by winning the fourth stage of the car classification on Wednesday.
The 48-year-old – who was crowned world rally champion a record nine times – had lost more than an hour and a half on the previous two stages but he was back to his
regal best for Wednesday’s 425km special race around Hail.
He denied his compatriot “Mr Dakar” Stephane Peterhansel his 50th stage win in the ultimate test of motoring endurance – Loeb timing just 13 seconds faster.
Peterhansel, who has a total of 14 Dakar wins to his name – eight on a motorbike and six behind the wheel – battled hard but had to settle for second, which leaves him third in the overall standings.
Qatar’s defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah tops the standings, 18 minutes ahead of Toyota teammate Saudi driver Yazeed Al Rajhi.