Sainz regains control on stage 10 as Alonso barrel rolls

Carlos Sainz Sr.

Two-time winner Carlos Sainz Sr. regained control of the 2020 Dakar Rally car category from his long-time rivals Nasser Al-Attiyah and Stephane Peterhansel after they lost over 10 minutes each to the Spaniard during Wednesday's stage 10.

Sainz Sr. has taken a commanding lead in the 2020 edition of the Dakar Rally after topping stage 10, which was suspended before the halfway point.

The Haradh – Shubaytah was hit with worsening weather conditions forced the organizers to end the competitive running early.

Citing "strong wind gusts" and all safety resources being "already mobilized", the Dakar declared the results of the stage at the 223km mark in the car competition.

Sainz Sr. meanwhile, came through without major setbacks that his top competitors experienced, ultimately picking up the stage win and inheriting a lead of 18m10s and 18m26s over Al-Attiyah and Peterhansel respectively in the general classification.

Alonso rolls Toyota on 10th Dakar Stage

Watch Fernando Alonso almost kill himself. Today’s barrel roll, right in front of all the cameras was more embarrassing then damaging. He then dusts himself down, and off he goes again. Chalk it up to the learning process; log it to the memory bank.

Bikes

Barreda wins Bike Stage 10

Barreda, Brabec and Benavides occupied the top three places in the tenth stage of the 2020 Dakar Rally to confirm Monster Energy Honda Team’s intentions for the overall victory. The second sector of the marathon stage was cancelled due to safety reasons.

Monster Energy Honda Team riders Joan Barreda, Ricky Brabec and Kevin Benavides all made it onto the podium at the end of the day’s stage which was cut short due to inclement weather. The tenth stage of the Dakar Rally – initially scheduled to cover 534 kilometers over two timed sectors – was shortened to just a single special when strong winds were forecast in the second stretch. Riders were directly diverted to the bivouac at Shubaytah to avoid the winds which could potentially have put the participants’ safety into jeopardy.

Barreda, Brabec and Benavides finished the short 222-kilometer special stage after imposing a white-knuckle pace. In spite of the speed, the squad riders were careful to keep their Honda CRF450 RALLY machinery in optimum conditions, given that today is the first part of the marathon stage which will see the riders accommodated in a separate camp. Today – as will be the case tomorrow – riders received the roadbook 25 minutes ahead of the start of the special. Once back at the Shubaytah bivouac, with no external mechanical assistance permitted, it was left to the riders themselves to attend to any servicing that might be necessary, as rally rules stipulate that no tires can be exchanged with other riders, but only mechanical elements, if need be.

The general standings continue to be dominated by Ricky Brabec, who increases the lead over his immediate rivals: more than 25 minutes over Pablo Quintanilla and 27 over his Monster Energy Honda Team stable-mate Joan Barreda, who, with today’s win leapfrogs a place in the general rankings. Jose Ignacio Cornejo, who posted the day’s tenth fastest time, still holds fifth spot overall.

Tomorrow sees the penultimate stage of this edition of the Dakar, the second leg of the marathon stage, with riders returning to the bivouac in Haradh. The opening kilometers will have a heavy dose of dunes before the stage finishes with sandy track and some solid ground.

Bike Quotes

[adinserter name="GOOGLE AD"]Kevin Benavides 7
STAGE: 3RD OVERALL: 21TH
Today was a short stage, very fast at the beginning, with very dangerous cut dunes. I took it easy at first, as a precaution, and then I began to push a bit harder. In the end, at the refuelling we were told that the second part had been cancelled for security reasons, which seems right to me. I'm happy for us, it's been a good day for the Honda guys, with a full podium. The bikes have done few kilometers, so they are fine and do not need much attention!

Ricky Brabec 9
STAGE: 2ND OVERALL: 1ST
We are in the bivouac of the marathon stage and we have only two stages left. Today it was very windy, and with the sand that was rising it was hard to see well, so they decided to cancel the last part. Well, we have to go every day, there is no other plan or strategy to complete. The goal is to get to the finish line every day with the motorcycle.

Joan Barreda 12
STAGE: 1ST OVERALL: 3RD
I think I rode a very good stage, although tomorrow I will have to start from the front and open the track in the dunes. Anyway, I’m satisfied with the pace that I’ve kept. I pushed hard to reach the frontrunners Price, Quintanilla which I managed to do at kilometer 130. Then we rode together as far as the refuelling where the organization then cancelled the rest of the special. The important thing now is that Ricky has the race under control and that Nacho, me and Kevin are fine. This is great for Honda!

Here is all you need to know:

– Today's stage saw a deterioration in weather conditions with the race directors deciding to halt proceedings after 345km between Haradh and Shubaytah due to strong winds.

– After Tuesday's stage nine, Qatari driver Al-Attiyah had reduced Sainz's overall lead to just 24 seconds while Frenchman Peterhansel stood a competitive six minutes and 38 seconds behind the Spaniard.

– With the leading trio boasting an astonishing 12 Dakar Rally car titles between them, Sainz got the upper hand again on Wednesday as he dug deep in Saudi Arabia to dominate the stage for another victory.

– The 1990 and 1992 WRC champion finished 3m 05s ahead of Polish driver Kuba Przygonski with 2009 Dakar champion Giniel de Villiers third 4m 26s behind.

– Peterhansel could only come in 10th and Al-Attiyah 17th as Sainz opened up an 18m 10s lead over Toyota driver Al-Attiyah and 18m 26s lead over his MINI Buggy team-mate Peterhansel in a crunch stage boost.

– Thursday's 744km stage 11 looks likely to be the last big chance to cut the overall deficit to Sainz with Friday's final stage only 447km into the Qiddiya finish.

– Al-Attiyah, 49, admitted: "At one point we got a little bit lost – that was just for two or three minutes. After getting that waypoint we took the wrong way, which took us 20km extra to drive. This is how it goes."

– American Ricky Brabec finished second in the bike category to increase his advantage to 25m 44s over Chilean Pablo Quintanilla with defending champion Toby Price still in fourth place, Austrian Matthias Walkner sixth and Argentine Luciano Benavides seventh overall.

Car Stage 10 Results

Car Standings after Stage 10

Bike Results Stage 10

Rider Standings after Stage 10