The 2023 Dakar Rally moved to the much-feared Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia on Stage 10, as opponents tackled a brief, sharp stage of solely 114km. However, all of the crews reported that the stage was unexpectedly troublesome, with the winners requiring 1hr 48min 32sec to finish the gruelling stage. Nasser and Mathieu recorded the 4th-fastest time of the day of their GR DKR Hilux T1+, ending 5min 45sec behind the winners. This allowed them to take care of their place on the head of the sector with none issues.
Empty Quarter has challenges for everyone
They rested straightforward within the data that teammates Giniel and Dennis have been shut behind them, carrying some spare components in case the general leaders required help. For the South African pairing, this position required them to permit Nasser and Mathieu to cross them early within the stage, as Giniel and Dennis have been forward on the street. Despite holding again through the opening a part of the stage, they nonetheless went 22nd-fastest, shedding simply 12min 24sec to the winners on the day. They stay in 5th place general, having prolonged their buffer to the crew behind them throughout Stage 10.
For Henk and Brett, Stage 10 introduced a chance to strike again after the difficulties they skilled on Stage 9. However, the stage proved more durable than anticipated, with many tough sections to barter. They had a clear run, recording the 9th-fastest time, simply 7min 59sec behind the winners. They now discover themselves holding regular in fourth general, 1hr 48min 37sec behind the lead.
Lucas Moraes and Timo Gottschalk, driving a privately entered model of the Toyota Hilux T1+ are nonetheless in second place general, 15min 49sec forward of the crew in third place. They have been third-fastest on Stage 10, relinquishing solely 5min 22sec to the chasing pack.
Only 4 levels stay within the 2023 Dakar Rally, with Stage 11 representing the ‘out-leg’ of the Marathon Stage. The 275km-long stage will see the opponents race away from the principle bivouac close to Shaybah, to a distant encampment the place they’ll don’t have any service crew to help them – any work or repairs that should be carried out on the automobiles must be carried out by the driving force and co-driver themselves, with the help of solely fellow opponents. Stage 12 will see the opponents return to the principle bivouac for a traditional service on the finish of the day.
The penultimate stage of the rally stretches from Shaybah to Al-Hofuf, alongside the Saudi border with the United Arab Emirates, earlier than the ultimate stage takes the rally from Al-Hofuf to the coastal metropolis of Dammam on January 15th.
Quotes
“Today, all three our crews did exactly what was required of them. Nasser and Mathieu kept out of trouble, maintaining their position at the top. At the same time, Henk and Brett recorded a good stage result, so they’ll have a better road position tomorrow. Finally, Giniel and Dennis played a perfect supporting role to Nasser and Mathieu, but even so, their stage result was very good.”
Glyn Hall, TGR Dakar Team Principal
“Yes, it was a short stage, but it was a tough one! It took us a long time to complete the stage, but I’m happy to be into the proper dunes now. I also think today was a good test day for the next two days, and we know exactly what we need to do for the Marathon Stage. But the most important step today was to finish the stage without any problems, which is exactly what we did.”
Nasser Al-Attiyah
“A troublesome stage! Never let a brief stage idiot you. This was solely a 114km stage, however 114km on this terrain isn’t straightforward in any respect, and it required full focus all through. In the start we took it straightforward with a view to let Nasser previous, and after that we actually simply adopted him by means of to the tip of the stage. There was some mud in the course of the stage, however nothing main. Today’s stage gave us a very good indication of what to anticipate over the subsequent few days.
Giniel de Villiers
“Not an easy stage at all, full of dunes. Very tricky, and the tracks of the guys ahead didn’t really help, as the track was already churned up badly. Even so, I’m glad we managed to get through the first proper dune stage.”
Henk Lategan
DAKAR 2023: Stage 10 Results (Empty Quarter)
| POS. | N° | CREW | TEAM | TIME | VARIATION |
| 1 | 201 | (FRA) SEBASTIEN LOEB(BEL) FABIAN LURQUIN | BAHRAIN RAID XTREME | 01H 48′ 32” | |
| 2 | 211 | (SWE) MATTIAS EKSTROM(SWE) EMIL BERGKVIST | TEAM AUDI SPORT | 01H 51′ 36” | + 00H 03′ 04” |
| 3 | 230 | (BRA) LUCAS MORAES(DEU) TIMO GOTTSCHALK | OVERDRIVE RACING | 01H 53′ 54” | + 00H 05′ 22” |
| 4 | 200 | (QAT) NASSER AL-ATTIYAH(FRA) MATHIEU BAUMEL | TOYOTA GAZOO RACINGGR Hilux T1+ | 01H 54′ 17” | + 00H 05′ 45” |
| 5 | 202 | (SAU) YAZEED AL RAJHI(DEU) DIRK VON ZITZEWITZ | OVERDRIVE RACING | 01H 54′ 33” | + 00H 06′ 01” |
| 6 | 203 | (POL) JAKUB PRZYGONSKI(ESP) ARMAND MONLEON | X-RAID MINI JCW TEAM | 01H 54′ 46” | + 00H 06′ 14” |
| 7 | 301 | (USA) SETH QUINTERO(DEU) DENNIS ZENZ | RED BULL OFF-ROAD JR TEAM USA BY BFG | 01H 55′ 17” | + 00H 06′ 45” |
| 8 | 322 | (CHL) IGNACIO CASALE(CHL) ALVARO LEON | X-RAID YAMAHA SUPPORTED TEAM | 01H 55′ 54” | + 00H 07′ 22” |
| 9 | 217 | (ZAF) HENK LATEGAN(ZAF) BRETT CUMMINGS | TOYOTA GAZOO RACINGGR Hilux T1+ | 01H 56′ 31” | + 00H 07′ 59” |
| 10 | 319 | (PRT) HELDER RODRIGUES(PRT) GONCALO REIS | SOUTH RACING CAN-AM | 01H 58′ 03” | + 00H 09′ 31” |
| 22 | 205 | (ZAF) GINIEL DE VILLIERS(ZAF) DENNIS MURPHY | TOYOTA GAZOO RACINGGR Hilux T1+ | 02H 00′ 56” | + 00H 12′ 24” |
DAKAR 2023: Standings after Stage 10
| POS. | N° | CREW | TEAM | TIME | VARIATION |
| 1 | 200 | (QAT) NASSER AL-ATTIYAH(FRA) MATHIEU BAUMEL | TOYOTA GAZOO RACINGGR DKR HILUX T1+ | 36H 13′ 37” | |
| 2 | 230 | (BRA) LUCAS MORAES(DEU) TIMO GOTTSCHALK | OVERDRIVE RACING | 37H 35′ 11” | + 01H 21′ 34” |
| 3 | 201 | (FRA) SEBASTIEN LOEB(BEL) FABIAN LURQUIN | BAHRAIN RAID XTREME | 37H 51′ 00” | + 01H 37′ 23” |
| 4 | 217 | (ZAF) HENK LATEGAN(ZAF) BRETT CUMMINGS | TOYOTA GAZOO RACINGGR DKR HILUX T1+ | 38H 02′ 14” | + 01H 48′ 37” |
| 5 | 205 | (ZAF) GINIEL DE VILLIERS(ZAF) DENNIS MURPHY | TOYOTA GAZOO RACINGGR DKR HILUX T1+ | 38H 24′ 33” | + 02H 10′ 56” |
| 6 | 231 | (FRA) ROMAIN DUMAS(FRA) MAX DELFINO | REBELLION RACING | 38H 59′ 01” | + 02H 45′ 24” |
| 7 | 210 | (CZE) MARTIN PROKOP(CZE) VIKTOR CHYTKA | ORLEN BENZINA TEAM | 39H 03′ 39” | + 02H 50′ 02” |
| 8 | 216 | (ZAF) BRIAN BARAGWANATH(ZAF) LEONARD CREMER | CENTURY RACING FACTORY TEAM | 39H 10′ 05” | + 02H 56′ 28” |
| 9 | 224 | (CHN) WEI HAN(CHN) MA LI | HANWEI MOTORSPORT TEAM | 39H 56′ 59” | + 03H 43′ 22” |
| 10 | 220 | (ARG) JUAN CRUZ YACOPINI(ESP) DANIEL OLIVERAS CARRERAS | OVERDRIVE RACING | 40H 14′ 12” | + 04H 00′ 35” |
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing enjoys a mutually useful relationship with its companions Red Bull, Kinto, Eurol and the Innovation Group. The staff can be supported by Hallspeed, SKF, Spanjaard, Edgecam, Supreme Springs, Shatterprufe, Smith’s Manufacturing, Oakley, Lumotech, OMP, MSA, SACCS and the FIA. Thanks additionally to Ingco, Jonsson Workwear and USN for his or her help.
Posted by Toyota South Africa DAKAR on MotorPress
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