PRESSURE MOUNTS WITHIN THE VW CAMP INTO THE DAKAR'S FINAL STAGE
2010-01-16 12:42:46 Author: admin Source:
The 2010 Dakar Rally penultimate stage’s 368km route between San Rafael and Santa Rosa in Argentina began with a tricky passage through the Nihuil dunes to 51km and then the tracks became much faster as the route headed across the pampas towards Santa Rosa. The day’s stage victory went to X Raid's Stéphane Peterhansel (above) but it mainly allowed Nasser Al Attiyah to get closer to Carlos Sainz in the general standings, the Spaniard now leads by only 2'48" going into the very last stage of the Dakar.
The race is far from being won: both leaders of the Volkswagen team are still fiercely battling for final victory.
Al Attiyah (above) jumped Sainz as soon as they crossed the first sandy section of the stage where he was 1’22” faster than the Spaniard. Then, Al Attiyah kept on pushing to make the leader doubt and win seconds after seconds. In the end, his mission was half accomplished: Al Attiyah, who arrived second of the day’s stage wins 2’32’’ over Sainz.
But, the next to last stage reassured the BMW X-Raid clan on its abilities to defy Volkswagen in the Dakar and in other rally raids, Peterhansel got the day’s best time whilst team mate Guerlain Chicherit (above) grabbed third to go between Al Attiyah and Sainz in the stage rankings. It was Peterhansel's fourth stage victory at this year’s Dakar and 55th career stage win.
Peterhansel started the special from fourth on the road, but did not give up on a possible stage win against the Race Touaregs. Through the 265km distance, Peterhansel’s lead had risen to 1'50" and he held on to take the stage win by the margin of 1'21" from Al-Attiyah.
The two Touaregs at the front of the overall standings continue to fight for victory until the last stage and keep the 2010 Dakar Rally exciting. Sainz(above)'s lead over their team mates in the overall standings shrunk to only 2'48" to Alttiyah and 31'48".to Mark Miller.
The two leading drivers and co-drivers have kept the Dakar fans on tenterhooks for days: During a remarkable chase Al-Attiyah reduced their deficit from 10'6" (stage 10) to 4' 28" (stage 11). The gap then climbed to 5' 20" (stage 12), and following the 13th stage, it declined to only 168 seconds. Therefore, the tension has risen up all the way to the finish in Buenos Aires for the final 206 km (stage 14). The victorious crew will receive the winners’ spoils today after having been greeted enthusiastically on the drive across the podium.
Today's stage marks the final stage and the return to Buenos Aires. The day starts with a 166km liaison from Santa Rosa to the start of a 206km special stage that finishes in the village of San Carlos de Bolivar, Buenos Aires.
Standings after Stage 13
1 Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz 45h 49m 42s
2 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Timo Gottschalk + 2m 48s
3 Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford + 31m 48s
4 Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-P. Cottret + 2h 16m 49s
5 Guerlain Chicherit/Tina Thörner + 4h 02m 42s
6 Carlos Sousa/Matthieu Baumel + 4h 26m 32s
7 Giniel de Villiers/Dirk von Zitzewitz + 5h 09m 14s
8 Robby Gordon/Andy Grider + 6h 01m 02s
9 Orlando Terranova/Pascal Maimon + 6h 02m 55s
10 Guilherme Spinelli/Filipe Palmeiro + 6h 09m 09s
