MOTORSPORT: DAKAR GLORY FOR SA TOYOTA TEAM
Qatari takes no risks on final stage in Peru
NASSER AL-ATTIYAH became a threetimes Dakar Rally winner yesterday, finishing with a 46-minute advantage after taking no risks on the final stage to Lima, while Australian Toby Price took the motorcycle crown.
The triumph, in a gruelling endurance event now run entirely in Peru and featuring cars, bikes and trucks, was a first for Japanese constructor Toyota.
Spaniard Carlos Sainz, last year’s car champion, won the closing 10th stage from Pisco with Al-Attiyah 12th and some nine minutes slower.
Sainz’s compatriot Nani Roma, in an X-Raid Mini, finished second overall with nine-times rally world champion Sebastien Loeb, runner-up in the stage, completing the podium with a privately-entered Peugeot in the absence of a works entry.
Al-Attiyah’s previous Dakar wins were with Volkswagen in 2011 and Mini in 2015.
Runner-up in 2018, the Qatari led after every stage bar the second day in this year’s event when South African teammate Giniel de Villiers was ahead.
Price, battling a painful wrist injury, had led overnight, but with only a minute between him and Chilean Pablo Quintanilla.
The Australian clinched his second Dakar title, on a KTM, after he won the stage and Quintanilla fell.
Russian Eduard Nikolaev secured his third successive Dakar title, and fourth in total, in the truck category with Kamaz.
South Africa’s Toyota Hilux crew of Al-Attiyah and navigator Mathieu Baumel had won the ninth stage in Pisco on Wednesday.
It was also a good day for De Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz who finished in third position on stage nine. But then the Dakar Rally threw a curveball that decimated the chasing pack. “Mr Dakar”, Stephane Peterhansel was forced to retire after his navigator, David Castera, injured his back when their Mini suffered a hard landing after a jump.
Then Loeb lost a huge amount of time after getting stuck early in the stage.
He lost more time working on his car, but managed to complete
the stage just over an hour behind Al-Attiyah.
At the same time, Mini driver Cyril Despres and navigator Jean-Paul Cottret rolled their car in the dunes, again shuffling the middle order.
To make matters even more interesting Sainz didn’t start Wednesday’s stage after his car suffered transmission failure.
“In the end, the (ninth) stage played right into our hands,” said an elated Toyota Gazoo Racing SA team principal, Glyn Hall, after the two Toyota Hilux crews made it safely to the bivouac at Pisco.
“But Nasser and Giniel stuck to
our own game plan, and delivered exactly what we needed – two cars home with no problems.”
Stage nine started with the cars going off in groups of four, and Al-Attiyah was paired with Loeb, Roma and De Villiers.
The Qatari driver didn’t allow himself to be baited, despite starting alongside two of his closest challengers, and drove the stage at his own, measured pace.
Even so, the Toyota Hilux crew set the fastest time on the day, beating Roma to the finish by nearly five minutes. De Villiers and navigator Von Zitzewitz finished the stage in
third place, 02:17 behind Roma.
“We had a really good, clean stage today (Wednesday),” said Al-Attiyah after reaching the bivouac at Pisco. “It was a great comfort to me to know that Giniel and Dirk were following us closely. As we saw today, anything can happen on the Dakar.”
Hall said: “It is difficult to focus on anything beyond Nasser and Mathieu leading the rally with one stage to go.”
“But the reality is that we now have four of our South African-built Toyota Hilux race cars in the top 10, including Giniel who is up to eighth.”