Consolidation for Toyota Gazoo Racing on Dakar Stage 4
- Al-Attiyah and Baumel extend their overall lead
- Lategan and Cummings eighth on stage, one place ahead of de Villiers and Murphy
A relatively clean fourth stage allowed defending champions, Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Mathieu Baumel, to extend their overall lead in the 2023 Dakar Rally to 18min 18sec over the privately entered Toyota Hilux T1+ of Yazeed Al Rajhi in second place. A single puncture was the only blot on an otherwise clean sheet for the Qatari driver and his French navigator.
At-Attiyah and Baumel posted the fourth fastest time, trailing the stage winners by 2min 06sec over the 264-mile timed distance. Their nearest competitors lost 7min0 04sec on the day, which mean the GR DKR Hilux T1+ crew increased their advantage in the overall standings.
Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings also had a successful stage, completing the course without a single puncture. They started as the second car on the road, which made it tricky to find the route. However, they established a good pace, often sharing the road with one of their competitors, and making it to the finish just 7min 23sec adrift of the stage winners.
Despite a penalty of 20min incurred in the first stage, the pair have moved up to fifth place in the overall ranking, 45min 25sec off the lead, and within 13min of fourth place. Having completed Stage 4 as the sixth-fastest car, they’ll be the sixth car on the road for Stage 5 today, placing them in a good position from which to attack.
Stage 4 also brought a clean run for Giniel de Villiers and co-driver Dennis Murphy. Starting 27th, they found their progress hampered by thick, wet sand in the early parts of the stage. They pushed on despite the conditions, recording the ninth-fastest time on the stage, 16min 11sec behind the winners.
This result leaves them in seventh overall, though their deficit to teammates Nasser and Mathieu has grown to 46min 13sec. They are just 46sec behind the crew ahead of them, and less than a minute behind Lategan and Cummings. Their road position for Stage 5 is ninth, which should increase their chances for a more competitive time.
Stage 5 will start and finish at the bivouac near the city of Ha’il, where cold weather and a rainstorm marked the arrival of the Dakar Rally on 3 January. A liaison of 90 miles will take the crews to the start of the stage, whereafter they will complete a timed special of 232 miles. Finally, a liaison of 81 miles will bring them back to the bivouac.
Three more stages will follow Stage 5 before the rally reaches the rest day at the Saudi capital of Riyadh. The second week of the event will take place largely in the so-called Empty Quarter in the southern part of Saudi Arabia, before the finish in the coastal city of Dammam on 15 January.
Team quotes
Glyn Hall, TGR Dakar Team Principal: “Someone once said that any day where you lead the Dakar is a good day, and as such today was another good day for us. Nasser drove a very steady stage with no problems, to extend his lead at the top by five minutes. So, no complaints today – let’s see what tomorrow brings.”
Nasser Al-Attiyah: “It was a very difficult day yet again. But I’m happy to have come through the stage without any serious drama, except for one flat tyre. We finished in fourth place, so our road position tomorrow will be much better. We’re still in the overall lead, and to me it is quite important to hold onto that lead, so that we can control the first week of the race.”
Giniel de Villiers: “We had a fairly good stage today, though the wet sand made the going quite difficult in the morning. We had a relatively clean day, and the car ran well. At the very least we’ve moved up the order in terms of our road position, which should make things a bit easier tomorrow.”
Henk Lategan: “The stage didn’t start of very well for us, as we struggled to find a good line. Maybe my inexperience in the dunes showed a bit, but when Stephan [Peterhansel] caught up with us, we managed to follow him for most of the day. When there were roads, we were in front, and when we went off piste, he was in front. We learnt a lot from him, and overall, we’re happy with today’s result.”
For results, times and standings, please visit newsroom.toyota.eu; for further media assets, please visit www.TGR-DAM.com.
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