Al-Attiyah claims Dakar third stage win
Al-Attiyah claims Dakar third stage win
WADI AD-DAWASIR, Saudi Arabia (AFP) - Qatari driver Nasser al-Attiyah won the third stage of the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, holding off the challenge of French arch-rival Stephane Peterhansel.
The three-time winner of the Dakar sped through a 403km loop around Wadi ad-Dawasir, the gateway to the Empty Quarter, a vast sand desert that covers much of the southern Arabian Peninsula, in 3hr 17min 39sec to take the victory.
Already winner of the prologue and Monday s second stage, Al-Attiyah finished 2:27 ahead of Toyota teammate Henk Lategan of South Africa.
"I m quite happy," said Al-Attiyah, also an Olympic bronze medallist in the skeet at the 2012 London Games.
"Today we really pushed a lot and Mathieu (Baumel, co-pilot) did the navigation well. Everything is working very well like we need it to.
"I m really quite happy with the pace, because to open and to win the stage is good."
Peterhansel, a 13-time Dakar winner, consolidated his lead in the overall standings with a third-placed finish, 4:05 off the pace.
The Frenchman, whose previous Dakar victories came seven times in a car and six on a motorbike, said a mixed terrain including big rocks, sandy canyons, dunes and a fast plateau had made it "a really complete stage".
"The result is not perfect because of the puncture," he said in reference to an early incident.
"But I m really happy with the job done by Edouard Boulanger, my co-pilot. In the complicated places, he did a really good job. I m happy with the car and I m happy with the co-pilot, so it s good for the next day."
Price reels in Benavides
Two-time winner Toby Price clocked 3hr 33min 23sec in winning the motorbike category for his 13th Dakar stage win, the Australian KTM rider tracking down Argentinian Kevin Benavides (Honda) in a gripping race.
Price, winner of the Dakar in 2016 and 2019, finished just 1:16 ahead of Benavides -- later extended by a 2min penalty for the Argentine - and now sits third in the overall standings behind new American leader Skyler Howes and Frenchman Xavier de Soultrait.
"So far, it s been up and down. It s quite frustrating to be in front one day and then at the back the next," said Price.
"The difficulty of the navigation means it s hard to open the road. I m going to have to do it tomorrow, but I hope there ll be a bit of respite and that it will be a day that s less complicated on the navigational front."
Price added: "It s been a good day for me. The bike s working well, I didn t fall and I didn t have any fuel problems like yesterday.
"Every day is going to count right up until the last one, but so far there have been no major problems."
Wednesday s fourth stage from Wadi Ad-Dawasir to Riyadh, at 813km the longest of this Dakar if the link sector is included, sees competitors racing a 337km special.
