Solberg has many reasons to smile after a spectacular WRC debut.

PHOTO CREDIT: Oliver Solberg Media

Oliver Solberg has many reasons to smile after delivering an outstanding performance at the Arctic Rally Finland over the weekend. 

Despite a seventh-place finish on debut, the 19-year-old Swede's performance on board the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC was nothing short of spectacular. Mistakes are to be expected from rookies, but Oliver handled it like a seasoned professional. 

With one stage to go on Sunday afternoon, he was on course for a top-three finish in the Wolf Power Stage, however, it was not to be as he spun in the final corner, which meant he lost sixth-place in the overall rankings by 1.2 seconds. 

Directly after the rally, Solberg was quick to thank Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal Andrea Adamo for the opportunity to make the step up to the WRC’s top flight.

"I don’t think I actually have the words to tell you how this feels," Oliver Solberg said. "It’s really unbelievable and the biggest thing I did in my career. To Andrea, to everybody in Hyundai Motorsport, and to the 2C [Compétition] team I just want to say thank you. 

"When Andrea talked about me doing this event, I was so excited. But at the same time, I was wondering a little bit in my mind, what will happen? How will it be?"

With a rallying career that started in 2017 (4-years-ago), Oliver answered all these questions and then some with his dynamite focus and quite astonishing speed. Having completed a couple of runs in the shakedown session to build his understanding of the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, he was bang on the pace from the get-go and was fourth fastest overall as early as the second stage. A day later, on Saturday morning, he went one better and bagged a top-three stage time. 

"I knew it would be complicated to understand the aero," he said. "But I was quite confident I would be happy at this speed. I didn’t expect to make these sort of times quite so early in the rally. It was just so much fun."

PHOTO CREDIT: Oliver Solberg Media.

Solberg reveals that he was told by Andrea Adamo (team principal) that he had no pressure and had to make sure he was smiling. "I am smiling more than I ever did before now," he says.

Having raced an R5 rally car for 3 years, the Swede was quite impressed by the overall grip and power of the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC. 

"The Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC was fantastic to drive, so much grip, so much power, and just so incredible to drive. When I was in the car and really in the middle of the event, I was just driving and not thinking so much to what everything really meant," he said. "But when I was between the stages and we were stopping behind [Sébastien] Ogier to change wheels and work on the car before the stage, I did stop a little bit and think: “Wow! This is just incredible – I’m here and I’m fighting with the world champion!"

"There were a couple of times when I was a little bit frustrated, like in the last stage. I made a spin near the finish and that cost me a sixth place. Sixth would have been nice, but I will take this result – in the top five on six stages out of 10. This is so much more than I could have dreamed of. It’s amazing. It’s unbelievable."

Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal Andrea Adamo has been left satisfied with his rookie's incredible progression throughout the event.

"I guess he enjoyed it a lot," Adamo said. "I think he has had an amazing rally, much better than what everyone expected."

"I think he did what we asked him to do – to enjoy, to enjoy it in the end. But in the end, I think he enjoyed to spin a bit in the snow. It’s good you know, I think he gave us all a breath of fresh air that is needed in the WRC world. So it’s good."

There is no doubt that Oliver will return to the World Rally Championship in the not too distant future, it's just a matter of which manufacturer will sign him up. 

JC Raceteknik and EKS join forces for 2021 and beyond.

PHOTO CREDIT: JC Raceteknik.

Reigning FIA World Rallycross Teams' Champions JC Raceteknik have announced a merger with Mattias Ekström's EKS for 2021 and beyond.

The merger between the two Swedish squads comes off the back of a successful 2020 FIA World Rallycross Championship campaign, which saw Mattias Ekström get the late call-up to replace Janis Baumanis at KYB Team JC. 

Whilst Ekström claimed two wins on course to claim second place in the drivers' championship. The Swede later announced that will not return to the World RX championship in 2021, as he aims to focus solely on the Extreme E series.

The two-time DTM Champion and 2016 World RX Drivers' Champion Ekström established the EKS RX in 2014 and went on to win both the Drivers' and Teams' titles in 2016.

Having stopped rallycross operations in 2018, the EKS squad returned a year later but not as an entrant, instead, they would provide maintenance and support to the Monster Energy RX Cartel who hired two Audi S1's for the 2019 season. 

In 2019, JC Raceteknik acquired a 2017 specification EKS Audi S1 Supercar, which they raced in the European Rallycross Championship with Robin Larsson at the wheel. Larsson went on to win the championship and thus earned a seat in the World Rallycross Championship for a one-off round.

Following the completion of the 2019 World RX season, JC Raceteknik announced the acquisition of two Audi S1 Quattro's and entered them in the World RX championship in 2020. Having announced their line-up, things soon changed due to the coronavirus pandemic seeing Mattias Ekstrom make a surprising return alongside Robin Larsson for the season. The Swedish duo went on to win the teams' championship for KYB Team JC.

"I founded the EKS team in 2014 with an ambition to win races and championships, and we achieved that in 2016, by winning Driver’s and Team’s titles. And during the 2019 & 2020 JC Raceteknik have taken our cars to the top of Nordic, European and World championships," Mattias Ekström said.

Joel Christoffersson believes that a shared mindset and attitude are the main reasons for the collaboration between JC Raceteknik and EKS for the foreseeable future.

"Me and Mattias share the same mindset and attitude for the sport. This is one of the main reasons why our cooperation has been so successful so far and that has become a solid foundation for joining forces for the future," Joel Christoffersson, the founder of JC Raceteknik, said.

The newly founded collaboration between the two Swedish teams will be headed up by Joel Christoffersson as Team Principal from his base in Kil, Sweden.

"From now on Joel will take care of all the EKS and JC Raceteknik joint racing projects – rallycross, rally, cross karts, and anything else we come up with," Ekström said.

The 42-year-old champion adds that EKS JC is evaluating the future of electric racing and aims to run electric cars in the near future. 

"We are also looking into the future of electric racing and sooner than later there will be a race car in our workshop that is purely driven by electricity," the Swede said.

Christoffersson has confirmed that the EKS JC will return to the FIA World Rallycross Championship in 2021, but has not confirmed the driver line-up as yet.

"For 2021 for sure we want to focus on FIA WorldRX and we want to win not only the Team’s title, but a Driver’s one as well. We are also looking into more projects to expand our operation in multiple disciplines," he said.

Ekström will drive a Skoda Fabia R5 in the newly rebranded EKS JC team in the Arctic Rally Finland World Rally Championship round at the end of this month. 

Written By - Junaid Samodien

Kenneth Hansen encouraged by initial talks with new World RX promoter.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

14-time European Rallycross Champion and Team Principal of Team Hansen, Kenneth Hansen has been left encouraged after initial talks with the new FIA World Rallycross Championship promoter, WRC Promoter. 

WRC Promoter has assumed the responsibilities for managing the World Rallycross Championship from 2021, replacing outgoing promoter IMG, and is set to oversee the championships transition to electric-powered vehicles in 2022. 

Team Hansen who have competed in the FIA World Rallycross Championship since the series inception in 2014 has welcomed WRC Promoter to the championship and they are looking forward to working together as rallycross moves into a pioneering new era. 

"We are happy that WRC Promoter has been chosen as the new promoter of the FIA World Rallycross Championship. Having seen the work WRC Promoter has done since taking over the World Rally Championship, we are confident the championship has a good future ahead of it," Kenneth Hansen said. 

Having had initial discussions with WRC Promoter, Hansen believes that the new promoter will steer the action-packed series in a positive direction in the coming years.

"They are planning a long-term commitment to our sport and, from our initial conversations, we are encouraged they will take the series in a positive direction."

"By remaining on track introduce to electric vehicles in 2022, we believe the championship is going in the right direction to become bigger and more successful in the future," he concludes. Motorsport has always been closely aligned with the car industry, and by adopting an electric formula, World RX will remain relevant for years to come."

World RX race-winner Kevin Hansen has also been left impressed by how WRC Promoter added value to the World Rally Championship, and he believes that they can take the sport to new heights. 

"WRC Promoter has created huge value for rallying the last few years, so having them onboard is the best news for rallycross in a long time," Kevin Hansen said.

Hansen adds that WRC Promoter will be able to give himself and his rivals the international recognition that they deserve. 

"I’m young, eager, and hungry to win a world championship, and going for the title now with WRC Promoter in charge should give myself and my rivals the opportunity to become stars worldwide while trying to win it."

"I’m really looking forward to the electric revolution coming in our championship and what the future holds."

The 2021 FIA World Rallycross Championship is set to get underway on 22-23 May at Spa-Francorchamps.

Written By - Junaid Samodien

Rosenqvist tips FIA RX2e to illuminate the international rallycross scene.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA RX2e Championship.

ABB Formula E and INDYCAR SERIES race-winner Felix Rosenqvist has high hopes for the new FIA RX2e Championship – describing the discipline as ‘the perfect format’ for electrification.

Rosenqvist has forged a deserved reputation as one of Scandinavia’s most successful – and versatile – motorsport drivers. Having won both the FIA Formula 3 European Championship and iconic Macau Grand Prix.

The Swede stepped up to Formula E for the 2016/17 campaign with Mahindra Racing, a team run in large part by QEV Technologies.

From two seasons in the all-electric single-seater series, Rosenqvist achieved three race wins, four more podium finishes, and an impressive third-place in the overall championship standings. 

The 29-year-old has since gone on to establish himself as a front-running competitor in the INDYCAR SERIES with Arrow McLaren SP, after securing ‘Rookie of the Year’ honours in 2019, and retains fond memories of his time spent working with QEV in Formula E.

"That was a really special period in my career," he said. "We had a lot of fun together. As an electric series, the software is the biggest factor in Formula E, and that is unquestionably QEV’s strength."

"All the guys at QEV are ultra-professional, and what really struck me was just how passionate they are about the technology. For every problem we encountered, they rapidly found a solution and they would spend countless hours working to extract every last thousandth-of-a-second.

"Since then, they have turned from a comparatively small operation into a much bigger one, with experience and success in a range of disciplines and on both the racing and road car side – and I have no doubt that they will make a similar success out of RX2e. Rallycross is obviously something new for them, but at the end of the day, like any other type of motorsport, it’s still about going fast and doing so in an efficient manner," he adds.

"Indeed, with its succession of short, sharp bouts, rallycross is in many respects the ideal arena for electric technology, and Rosenqvist is swift to point out the benefits not only from an environmental standpoint but on the performance side too, predicting faster races and eye-watering acceleration from the new FIA World Rallycross Championship feeder series."

Founded in 2013, QEV Technologies is one of the Pioneers when it comes to electric mobility. The Spanish firm was involved in Formula E from the outset, propelling the likes of Nelson Piquet Jnr to the title with NEXTEV during the series' inaugural season in 2014/15 before partnering with Mahindra Racing. 

Felix competed in the ABB FIA Formula E series for three seasons with Mahindra Racing and has worked closely with QEV Technologies through the years. 

"Electric technology has progressed hugely over the past seven years – just look at how much quicker Formula E cars are now compared to back then – and all of that progress can be filtered into RX2e," he said.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA RX2e Championship.

Rosenqvist believes that the short sharp nature of rallycross is perfect for electric technology. "Weight has been the biggest limiting factor, but electric motors are getting lighter all the time and in any case, you can get away with carrying a little bit more weight in rallycross because the races are shorter and you have a lot of power available. Rallycross could almost have been tailor-made for electric technology – it has the perfect format."

"I think the RX2e car will definitely represent a step forward in performance terms. People always talk about the acceleration in an electric road car – well guess what, it’s exactly the same thing in a race car. You get crazy acceleration out of an electric motor – you can exit every corner flat-out, which is incredible," the Swede said.

"A few years ago, everybody was dead-set against electric technology, but the world is changing fast and the fact of the matter is that whoever doesn’t get on-board with it now is going to be left behind. This is the future, and I’m really excited to see the RX2e car in action..."

World RX - The dawn of a new era.

PHOTO CREDIT: World RX Media

An exciting future lays in wait as the WRC Promoter GmbH has been announced as the new promoters of the FIA World Rallycross Championship. 

One could easily associate the World Rallycross Championship with a thrilling novel that you could find at your local bookstore. But, associating a motorsport series with a book seems wrong on so many levels. So, why are we making this association, you ask? It's mainly due to IMG's tenure at the helm of the series. The former promoters built the championship from the ground up and whilst there were challenges along the way they pushed through and concurred. This makes for an incredibly exciting story don't you think?

As "chapter one" draws to a close, the reader sort of formulates an idea of what the future holds within in a story, and it develops it can only better from thereon, which is quite similar to the news that Red Bull are new promoters of the FIA World Rallycross Championship. 

Chapter Two we will see the short, sharp, and action-packed series transition from combustion engines to EV technology, and whilst the USP (Unique Selling Point) of World RX is its loud combustion engines, a push to green energy will see the sport transition to buzzing electric power from 2022.

Whilst the era of pulsating anti-lag will soon come and go. The dawn of a new era is upon us, and it's within our hands to adopt it or move on. No-one likes change including us, but as time moves on, change is necessary. It's a game of being relevant or get left behind. The world is going electric and so will rallycross in the coming years. 

The future of motorsport is electric. So, why an electric future? It's mainly because vehicle manufacturers have begun phasing in electric energy into production vehicles as they aim to become carbon neutral in the near future. The go-green or electric future has seen manufacturers enter the likes of Formula E, etc. to develop and design new forms of technology for everyday use and this is something that will be introduced in all forms of motorsport sooner than later. 

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA World RX Media.

But, as we usher in a new era, we need to take a look back at where it all began back in 2013 when IMG became the promoter of FIA Rallycross (a 20-year deal). A year later, rallycross shifted to FIA World Championship status and the rest is history. 

World Championship status saw rallycross move to new territories within Europe and further afield to the likes of North and South America, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. This move saw the championship grow from strength-to-strength. 

Its global expansion saw a handful of manufacturers joining the series from Volkswagen, Peugeot, Audi, and Ford supporting some of the biggest names in motorsport - Ken Block, Sebastien Loeb, and Mattias Ekstrom to name a few. 

As time evolved and a move to electric became known the atmosphere slightly changed, and as soon as manufacturer involvement came, it went as the championship announced its push to electric-powered cars, but due to a delay to the implementation of electric rallycross, which was set to be introduced in 2020. A number of manufacturers announced their withdrawal after the 2019 season. Some citing a delay of the electric push and others suggesting that it doesn't fit into their sustainability plans. 

Whilst the 2019 season was a bit of an unknown due to withdrawal from the manufacturer teams, we soon saw independent teams era, but there is no doubt that the 2019 season will go down in history as the closest and most thrilling season ever witnessed, as Timmy Hansen was crowned FIA World RX Champion based on a countback of event wins rather than championship points. 

The puzzle pieces fell into place for the 2020 season, but then the coronavirus pandemic struck leading to a delayed and rather compact season, but when it eventually got underway double World Champion Johan Kristoffersson came out on top to claim a third world title. 

2021 will be a transitional year as Red Bull enter the series, with a different approach and mindset, but their knowledge should not be underestimated as they have been a promoter of WRC for some years now. So, their knowledge and no-how will be welcomed in a push to further grow the World Rallycross Championship. 

But in the same breathe as being genuinely excited about the WRC Promoter GmbH's involvement, we should actually applaud IMG at the same time for its bold and successful strategy of growing rallycross globally. 

Some of their decisions might not have gone down well with the fan base whilst others were simply forward-thinking. Many fans would agree that the free online live streams lead by Neil Cole, Laura Winter, and commentators Andrew Coley and Dan Rooke brought them a lot closer to the sport compared to many other motorsport series. It's something we can truly be thankful for! 

As we usher in change... We need to remain open minded, as the new promoter will have to learn a bit about the sport before implementing change. So, 2021 will be a transitional year but they have the potential to take World RX to much bigger heights than before, and we can't wait!

Will anything change on the commentary or broadcasting front? We certainly hope not, as Andrew Coley (lead commentator) and Dan Rooke are an incredible duo in the commentary box, along with lead TV anchors Neil Cole and Laura Winter.

As for the future of World Rallycross, we spoke to three-time World Rallycross Champion Johan Kristoffersson to get his viewpoint on the future of the sport, and he firmly believes that the new promoters should immediately start working towards the electric future of the sport, as he believes its crucial. 

"As soon as we get a new promoter. They should start to work towards the electric future and make a decision quite soon on what's going to happen," he said. "So, that teams can prepare for 2022, I think is more crucial."

The three-time World Champion went on further to say that the new promoter should make the cars more extreme and difficult to drive when the sport makes the transition to EV technology in 2022. 

"If and when it goes electric, I think it's very important that the cars should be extreme, difficult for the drivers to control and faster than current cars," he adds. "With the lack of anti-lag sound, the fans need something extra to make it exciting!"

The future is here, so let's embrace it!

Written By - Junaid Samodien

New promoter confirmed for the World Rallycross Championship.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA World RX Media

The WRC Promoter Group has been announced as the new promoters of the FIA World Rallycross Championship ahead of the 2021 season.

In October last year, the FIA launched a tender process in the search for a new series promoter after IMG relinquished its role as World RX promoters after 8-years. 

The FIA's collaboration with the WRC promoter has seen the group reach a multi-year agreement beginning in 2021. 

So, who is the WRC Promoter Group (GmbH)? The German-based company was founded in 2013 in a collaboration between Red Bull Media House and KW25. 

“We are pleased to be aligning with WRC Promoter as we build towards a ground-breaking electric future for the FIA World Rallycross Championship," Peter Bayer, Secretary-General for Sport, FIA said. 

"The FIA and WRC Promoter have reached a common vision on how to work together for the benefit and the growth of rallycross. Our respective teams are working on a long-form agreement, look forward to commencing work on the 2021 championship and to the move of the sport towards a bright, more sustainable, and greener future."

"We have worked extensively with the company as the promoter of the FIA World Rally Championship for a number of years and we anticipate they will bring the same energy and dynamism to the promotion of rallycross."

The new series promoters will have an almighty task ahead of them, as they will be responsible for the championships transition from combustion engines to EV technology in 2022. 

In addition to announcing the new promoters today, the FIA has added that WRC Promoters Group has committed to investing in the World Championship and in particular the development of the future electrification of the rallycross as a whole. 

"World Rallycross sits on the verge of an innovative and pioneering future. We see strong growth potential in all areas and WRC Promoter is delighted to be at the forefront of a series focused on sustainable technology and e-mobility," Jona Siebel, Managing Director, WRC Promoter, said.

"Rallycross provides breathtaking thrills and spills and we will build new foundations to create an engaging and progressive platform for our global audience and partners."

The 2021 FIA World Rallycross Championship (RX1) season is scheduled to start at Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) on May 22-23. The season-opener will be supported by the new FIA RX2e series. 

The WRC Promoters Group will be responsible for the new RX1e electric FIA World Rallycross Championship which is set to debut in 2021. The new era of World RX will feature four-wheel drive 600hp Touring Cars (bodies) with performance levels that will be capable of exceeding the current combustion engine Supercars. 

In January, the FIA launched a tender proposal for the promotion of the FIA European Rallycross Championship, encompassing the EuroRX and Super1600 championships. However, for 2021 the European Rallycross Championship will remain under one umbrella with the new WRC Promoter Group. 

The FIA has also stated that the submissions for the 2021 FIA European Rallycross Championship from 2022 to 2025 are currently being considered.

Three double-headers and a super Swedish showdown to decide RallyX Nordic title fights.

PHOTO CREDIT: RallyX Nordic.

Finland rejoins the RallyX Nordic schedule in 2021 with a double-header weekend at OuluZone.

Despite the disruption of the coronavirus pandemic, RallyX Nordic bucked the trend in 2020 with a tremendously successful season. Not only did the series stage the first major international rallycross event of the year last summer – Höljes’ ‘All-Star Magic Weekend’, attracting some of the biggest names in rallycross and rallying, namely, Johan Kristoffersson, Niclas Grönholm, Timmy Hansen, Oliver Solberg and Thierry Neuville.

Over the course of the campaign, NEP Sweden produced more than 43 hours of cutting-edge, live high-octane action, state-of-the-art drone footage and privileged behind-the-scenes insights (all of which can now be viewed for free here), taking viewers right to the very heart of the events during a period when trackside attendance was strictly off-limits.

In addition to keeping fans royally entertained – with pulsating title fights in every class rooting them to their seats season-long – it also ensured competitors enjoyed unprecedented levels of exposure and their sponsors benefitted from unparalleled return on investment, at a time when value for money was arguably more important than ever.

With five classes on the agenda – the pre-existing Supercar, Supercar Lites, CrossCar/Crosskart and CrossCar Junior categories joined by Open 2WD in 2021 – and interest already running at record levels, everything is set for another spectacular season of RallyX Nordic competition as bumper grids are anticipated across the board.

The 2021 campaign will get underway with a Danish double-header at Nysum – scene of last year’s title-decider – on 1-2 May, while Sweden’s iconic Höljes circuit plays host to rounds three and four a few weeks later (13-16 May). 

Finland makes a welcome return to the calendar on 5-6 June with the double-header contested at OuluZone in the north of the country, before Arvika in southern Sweden brings the curtain down on proceedings with a single-header showdown on 13-15 August.

“We are delighted to confirm Finland’s return,” said Jan-Erik Steen, CEO of RallyX Nordic promoter, RX Promotion. “We have always maintained a good relationship with the Finnish event organisers, and it was a shame we were not able to go there last year due to scheduling difficulties.

“As we said at the time, it was very much our intention to reinstate Finland to its rightful place on the RallyX Nordic calendar, and to have reached an agreement to race at OuluZone is fantastic news for all concerned. Together with Nysum, Höljes and Arvika, we are confident we now have all the ingredients for an exciting, varied and thrillingly unpredictable season ahead.”

2021 RallyX Nordic Calendar

May 1-2           Rounds 1/2 Nysum, Denmark    RallyX Nordic only

May 13-16        Rounds 3/4 Höljes, Sweden    RallyX Nordic and Swedish Championship

June 5-6          Rounds 5/6 OuluZone, Finland   RallyX Nordic only

August 13-15  Round 7         Arvika, Sweden    RallyX Nordic and Swedish Championship

Lategan to undergo shoulder surgery following Dakar injury.

PHOTO CREDIT: Toyota GAZOO Racing South Africa.

Henk Lategan has confirmed that he will undergo shoulder surgery on Tuesday (today).

Having made their debut at the 2021 Dakar Rally, Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings had a lot to learn. And, coming from a cross country background, the South African pair has the necessary experience, but the Dakar is a whole different ball game with its long and challenging sandy dunes, etc. 

Lategan and Cummings overcame a few hurdles in the opening stages and brought home a superb second-place finish on stage three, immediately followed up with a third-place finish on stage four. A rather impressive result. However, a day later they would retire for the Dakar. 

PHOTO CREDIT: A.S.O/Dakar Rally.

The South African duo were forced to retire from the 2021 Dakar Rally after a heavy crash near the start of stage five. Henk and co-driver Brett were the third car to start the 456km-long stage between Saudi capital Riyadh and Al Qaisumah. Whilst they got off to a good start, they hit a ditch 19km's into the stage rolling their Toyota Hilux. 

Fortunately, the pair escaped any serious injuries. However, Lategan was flown to a hospital with a suspected collarbone fracture and was later released from the hospital. 

Henk confirmed on Monday evening that he will undergo surgery on his shoulder. 

"(I'm) going in for surgery on my shoulder," Lategan said. "The dislocation at Dakar is a bit worse than we first thought. Hopefully, I will be back in action soon!"

Written By: Junaid Samodien.

Casale dedicates Dakar result to his father.

PHOTO CREDIT: BUGGYRA Racing.

Ignacio Casale, a name associated with a lot of success in cross country racing, including the world's toughest race, the Dakar Rally. 

The Chilean drivers' adventure started over 12 years ago alongside his father, competing in the trucks category. The father and son duo claimed a 26th-place finish, a result that earned Casale a wildcard entry for the 2011 Dakar Rally, and thereafter the rest is history. 

He returned to the Dakar Rally in 2011 in motorbike category in where he finished 40th overall. The following year he moved over to the quads category and claimed a strong fourth-place finish. 

A year later in 2013, Casale made history when he won stage 7 to become the first Chilean rider to win a stage in the quad's category and went on to finish second overall in the classification. 

In 2014, he went one better and won 13 stages on course to win his first of three Dakar Rally's. He returned to defend the title in 2015, but unfortunately, it didn't go according to plan as he retired due to a mechanical issue.

He then returned in 2016 but was forced to withdraw due to an injury, but a year later he returned to seal a second title on a quad bike. 

Having reached a lot of success in the quad category, Casale moved to the SSV category in 2018, but it didn't go to plan as he withdrew after stage six due to a mechanical issue and returned a year later on a quad bike to claim a third Dakar title in the quads category.

Would he return in 2021? Yes, he did! The Chilean made the switch to the Trucks category where his Dakar adventure started over 12 years ago as earlier mentioned, and he finished 9th place in the overall standings. A result he would later dedicate to his father. 

"I would like to dedicate my 9th place to my father. It was with him when I did my first Dakar in a truck 12 years ago," Casale said.

Casale's move from the quads category was quite a surprise for many, but little did we know that he was in talks with the Buggyra Racing team since 2019. 

Being realistic the Chilean set the goal of achieving a top 10 finish in the truck category which he successfully achieved in 2021. 

The Chilean claimed his best result of the 2021 Dakar Rally on stage 8, a fifth-place finish.

"Big thanks also to the whole family for their support and the whole Buggyra Racing team. It is the best Dakar team I’ve ever had," the Chilean said. "My navigator Álvaro (León) did a fantastic job, and co-driver David (Hoffmann) as well. He had lots of patience with us. It’s very emotional. Thanks to everybody!" 

Written By - Junaid Samodien.

Dakar 2021: Stage 9 - The horror stage... for some.

PHOTO CREDIT: X-Raid Mini JCW.

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

Edited: Junaid Samodien 

Honda edging towards number two? 

An eight stage win for 2021 as all of their title rivals lost time or retired, certainly now means that Honda can comfortably take their second successive Dakar win. 

Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo (Honda), yesterday extended his 1 second lead over Toby Price (KTM) to 1:06 minutes. Suffering a cut to his rear wheel, midway through the marathon stage, Price had to nurse his tyre back to the liaison yesterday. 

With the 9th stage said to prove trying for navigation, Price stormed into the stage, leading after the first checkpoint. Cornejo Florimo soon bested the Australian at the next check, but was soon beaten by his teammate, Ricky Brabec (Honda) at the third check. 

Struggling with navigation, the overall leader lost some time to Price and his Monster Energy Honda teammates, but soon again jumped into the lead of the stage as Kevin Benavides dropped time, with Ricky Brabec losing almost 21 and a half minutes before the halfway mark. 

Drama soon erupted as Price came to a standstill in the stage. Meanwhile, Daniel Sanders and Sam Sunderland were also losing significant time, potentially bringing an end to KTM’s overall 2021 contention. 

As Honda continued their attack, news came through that Price had crashed at 155km and broke his collarbone. Was this the final blow for KTM in 2021? 

With Cornejo Florimo now able to rest somewhat, Benavides soon took the stage lead, with Van Beveren slightly catching up throughout the stage. At the same time, Luciano Benavides (Husqvarna), who was also setting quick times during the stage, had to be airlifted to the hospital after a crash. 

Kevin Benavides held a steady 2 to 3 minute gap over Cornejo Florimo as the stage progressed, whilst van Beveren now moved into 3rd after Luciano Benavides’ crash.

Ricky Brabec took the lead at waypoint 4 (PK121) but lost over twenty minutes when he stopped to help the injured Toby Price. Price's teammate Sam Sunderland also stopped to assist. At the end of the stage, the A.S.O handed some time back to both riders. 

Kevin Benavides would win the stage with Ricky Brabec finishing in second, but it would ultimately be Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo and Honda claiming a 1-2-3 finish as their main rivals fell today. 

Cornejo Florimo now takes a 11:24 minute lead from Kevin Benavides, with Barreda Bort following 14 minutes behind the duo. This is the largest gap we have seen all race long. 

Will Honda make it a historic 1-2-3 on Friday? 

From bad to out for Branch 

After suffering three falls and mechanical problems during the first leg of the marathon stage, Ross Branch (Yamaha) lost all hope for overall contention. Dropping to 15th position overall on stage 7, the Botswana-born rider fought his way back yesterday to overtake his much more experienced teammate, Adrien van Beveren. 

Today, Branch again started very strong, clearing teammate, van Beveren in the early stages. However, his engine soon cut out, meaning that the Yamaha leader (up till this point) had to be forced into retirement. 

Yamaha now only has van Beveren to fight for stage wins. 

A bad day indeed for Southern Africans and Yamaha. 

Peterhansel on the verge of victory number 14?

The start of the 9th stage saw much the same as we did yesterday, with the Toyota of Nasser Al-Attiyah and the two Mini’s of Stephane Peterhansel and Carlos Sainz fighting one another with mere seconds between them. 

Opening the road today, Al-Attiyah edged the two Mini’s, but only 6 seconds separated the trio. Come the second checkpoint, Peterhansel jumped into the hot seat, while the other two kept within 10 seconds. 

As the stage progressed, first Sainz lost over 5 minutes, with Al-Attiyah soon following to almost lose 6 minutes to Peterhansel before the midway point has been reached. 

The speculation came in that Peterhansel and Al-Attiyah were playing a strategic game with one another to not lead the stage and let the rival make a mistake. All this meant that the likes of Mathieu Serradori (Century Racing) Yazeed Al-Rahji (Overdrive Toyota) and Giniel de Villiers (Toyota Gazoo Racing) steadily started catching up. 

Progressively losing time to Peterhansel, Al-Attiyah had already lost 10:20 minutes to the leaders just past the midway mark of the stage. Finishing the stage, the Qatari had lost 12 minutes in total. The overall gap has therefore grown to almost 18 minutes, while Sainz is a further 42 minutes adrift.  

Rather, it was Serradori, who started to lead the stage after 320km as Peterhansel evidently held his word not to open a stage for the 2021 edition. De Villiers also managed to pass the times of his teammate and would finish the stage in third position. 

However, towards the end of the stage, Serradori’s car ground to a halt, propelling Peterhansel back into the lead, with De Villiers in third and Brian Baragwanath in fifth.

To rub salt in Carlos Sainz's wounds after navigational issues in week one. The Spaniard had to contend with brake issues today which cost him over 20 minutes, and his hopes of defending the title have slipped by the wayside (+01:02:25 behind). 

Today’s stage might just have been the final plot twist.  

Dakar 2021: Stage 8 - Toyota and Honda make it 7 out of 9 .

 PHOTO CREDIT: A.S.O/Dakar

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

Motorbikes: 7th stage win for Honda

The stage from Sakaka to Neom today saw the battle between the KTM’s and Honda’s resume as Toby Price, Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo, and Joan Barreda Bort (Honda) all set the timesheets alight. 

Winning the stage yesterday, Ricky Brabec (Honda) struggled to keep the pace of the leading trio as Price held the slightest of margins over Cornejo Florimo and Barreda Bort. Finishing the stage yesterday, Cornejo Florimo led overall by 1 second over Price. 

With a new rule, seeing riders only allowed 6 tyres, Price had to patch his wheel in a very innovative way, whilst also setting blistering stage times. This is why the Australian is a 2-time Dakar winner. 

As the stage progressed, Brabec started to lose time as Cornejo Florimo overtook Price, leading the latter by a mere 7 seconds after waypoint 8 (PK307), extending his lead as the stage progressed. 

The Chilean would win the stage by 1:05 minutes, extending his lead over Price to 1:06. With only four stages remaining and Cornejo Florimo opening the stage tomorrow, the 2021 Dakar Rally is too close call. 

Xavier de Soultrait (HT Rally Raid Husqvarna) also saw a promising 2021 race and started today’s stage in 4th overall. However, medical assistance was deployed at the 267km mark as the rider crashed heavily and therefore had to retire from the race. 

After a horrible day yesterday, seeing him fall 3 times, damaging his bike in the process, and taring apart his knee guards, Ross Branch (Yamaha) held a steady pace as the top Yamaha today as the rest of the top 15 were spread widely in the standings. 

Branch finished 11th, some 9 minutes behind the stage winner. Whilst losing time to the leaders, the Botswana rider did manage to climb up two spots in the overall rankings as de Soultrait retired and Van Beveren fell behind by 15 seconds. 

Losing Franco Caimi due to a broken engine; the third of their five riders today, Yamaha only has Branch and Adrien Van Beveren left to fight for stage victories. 

Cars: 7th stage win for Toyota 

The first marathon section yesterday, saw Yazeed Al-Rahji (Toyota Overdrive) win the stage in the latter part as Stephane Peterhansel (X-Raid Mini JCW) evidently ran into problems, yet still managed to extend his overall lead over the Toyota of Nasser Al-Attiyah. 

Today, however, the Qatari launched onto the stage, leading both Mini’s and Al-Rahji by mere seconds. However, at the waypoint 4 (PK161), Peterhansel started edging Al-Attiyah once again, while Sainz slightly trailed the two upfront. 

The top-three would keep on trading times, staying within seconds from one another as Al Rajhi started to fall behind the likes of Cyril Despres (Abu Dhabi Racing).  

Towards the end of the special, Al-Attiyah distances Peterhansel, while Sainz stayed in a close second. Yet, the Toyota’s gap to Peterhansel was not sufficient to drastically reduce the overall lead. The Qatari won the stage by 52 seconds over Sainz, while cutting 3:03 minutes into Peterhansel’s lead. 

Opening the road once again tomorrow, Al-Attiyah will hope to cut down the 4:50 minute deficit to Peterhansel. 

Shameer Variawa and Giniel de Villiers also held their heads high today, constantly racing within and around the top 10 stage times. However, de Villiers' charge was hampered by punctures once again. 

Having reached the bivouac with 1 minute till cut-off at 1 am, Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) spent the night working on their car and started the stage 51st, but gained time as they also raced their way to 12th-place today.

Edited By: Junaid Samodien. 

Dakar 2021: Stage 7 - Al-Attiyah and Branch loses out.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool. 

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

Edited: Junaid Samodien

The seventh stage of the 2021 Dakar Rally was one to forget for Yamaha's Ross Branch and the Toyota Gazoo Racing's Nasser Al-Attiyah. Rather, it was a victorious day for Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo (Honda) and Stephane Peterhansel (X-Raid Mini JCW) as they now have a firmer grasp on yet another title. 

Honda’s continue to dominate stages as Price extends overall lead 

The Honda’s of Kevin Benavides and Ricky Brabec continued their normal stage attack as Cornejo Florimo and Toby Price (KTM) held a steady attack pace to extend their overall lead. With five stages remaining, the Honda and KTM squad are ensued in their heated battles to take the overall victory. 

Benavides then lost around 10 minutes to his teammate just before the finish, elevating Xavier de Soultrait (HT Rally Raid Husqvarna) and Jose Cornejo Florimo (Honda) ahead. The KTM’s of Sam Sunderland and Daniel Sanders were also once again on the attack and constantly kept within the top 5 times. 

The 2020 winner, Brabec won today’s stage, Cornejo Florimo, Sunderland, Sanders, and de Soultrait followed. 

Yet, Cornejo Florimo crossed the line to now lead the overall standings by a mere 1 second from Price. Sunderland follows, some 2:10 minutes back, with de Soultrait hot on his heels, only 23 seconds back. 

Once again the gaps are extremely close, with the top 4 now only separated by 2:30.  

Yamaha’s title hopes were somewhat diminished today as Ross Branch crashed very early in the stage. Although he was fine, his bike needed repairs. The Botswana rider, therefore, lost 42 minutes to the stage leaders. 

However, with the Honda’s and KTM’s seemingly on the attack for the second week, it will be a tough ask, with not much time left to do so. He will now have the same task as Carlos Sainz (X-Raid Mini JCW) had early in week 1; with a mammoth task to claw back more than 41 minutes. Teammate, Adrien van Beveren, attacked harder today but also lost considerable time to the stage leaders. Although now the leading Yamaha rider, the Frenchman is 38 minutes behind the leaders.  

Peterhansel extends lead 

After extensive work was done to the Toyota GAZOO Racing SA Hilux's during the rest day yesterday, all eyes were on Nasser Al-Attiyah to see if the Qatari would be able to claw back the odd 5 minutes to Stephane Peterhansel. 

Yet, Peterhansel managed to hold his own today as the Frenchman more than doubled his lead over the Toyota. 

The stage would again follow the same proceedings as that of stage 6 as a Mini would again lead the stage with Yazeed Al-Rahji (Toyota Overdrive) in second place, fending off the second Mini. This time around, however, Peterhansel led the stage, with Carlos Sainz chasing in third. 

Towards the end of the stage, the situation quickly turned as Al-Rahji took the lead of the stage, while Al-Attiyah gained some 5 minutes on Peterhansel to trail the Frenchman by 1:30 in the stage. All eyes were on the finish line. 

Al-Rajhi reached the finish line, 1:15 minutes ahead of Sainz, while Peterhansel finished 48 seconds behind Al Rahji, putting two more minutes into his overall lead over Al-Attiyah. Was this strategic gameplay to allow Al-Rahji to open the road tomorrow? We should soon find out! 

Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) had a torrid day as the South-African pairing ground to a halt at the 33km mark after hitting a hidden rock in the soft sand and broke a rear suspension linkage. SRT's Mathieu Serradori tried to provide some assistance but he did not have the required part. At the time of publishing this article, Baragwanath and Perry are still on the stage trying to make it to the bivoauc. 

Giniel de Villiers (Toyota Gazoo Racing SA) also lost time today and finished the stage in twenty-second place. 

Dakar 2021: REST DAY - Relax. Rebuild. Rethink.

PHOTO CREDIT: Toyota Gazoo Racing SA.

Relax. Rebuild. Rethink. Three words that racing drivers and teams are rarely associated with, but after 2,289 grueling timed kilometers. Riders, drivers, and navigators have earned some time off. In theory, a rest day is time off, but in the rally raid world teams' will use the time for media purposes. 

Whilst the drivers and navigators (co-drivers) take some time to breathe a bit today. Mechanics are a lot busier as they are rebuilding the cars, lightweight vehicles, bikes, and trucks. The Original By Motul category is a tad bit different though. The riders in this class are required to rebuild and fix the bikes themselves, and if required they can request the advice of racing teams, but the job has to be completed by them. 

Honda large and in charge.

The 2021 Dakar Rally has thrown the cat amongst the pigeons with new rules for the elite riders. Each elite rider will only be allowed to use six tyres. 

Some elite riders have voiced their dissatisfaction with this new rule. However, these new rules were introduced to bring the bike class a touch closer than before.

After seven days of long/ tough stages, KTM's Toby Price came out on top. The Australian leads the overall rankings by two minutes and 16 seconds over Honda's Kevin Benavides. 

Benavides has been nursing a broken nose after an accident on stage five, whilst his teammates are largely in charge of the bike category, with only a handful of riders, namely: Toby Price, Ross Branch (Yamaha), and Daniel Sanders (KTM), etc. being to take the fight to the four Honda riders. 

In the same breath, Honda appears to be in control, but the field has closed up considerably as the rally raid continued. The top six riders are now split by six minutes and 25 seconds, and with six stages to go, we are set for a close fight to the end. 

With three wins to his name, Joan Barreda Bort has had a much better year and is quite confidentially going about his business. A noticeable strategy has emerged from the Spaniard. He wins stages, and with that, you are required to open the road the following day, which has proven to be a mighty challenge for most, but he has gone into them without losing too much time to his rivals. 

Ross Branch has lead the charge for the Monster Energy Yamaha Rally Team and has been mighty impressive. He came within 13 seconds of clinching Yamaha's first Dakar stage win this year. Oh so close... but his consistency has been key and after an 11-kilometer prologue and six stages. The Kalahari Ferrari is just 3 minutes and 41 seconds off the overall rankings lead. Go, Ross! 

It hasn't been the smoothest of Dakar's for the defending champion Ricky Brabec. The American is nearly 20 minutes off the lead in the overall rankings but has admitted that one of his targets is to make it to the finish line after six days of intense racing. He wasn't quite ready for the rest day but admits there are still six days to attack and this is where he aims to gain some time. 

BAS Dakar KTM's Skyler Howes has been the most impressive non-factory rider this year. He held the lead of the overall rankings briefly but has since slipped to ninth overall just 15:12 off the top of the rankings. Howes as a strong future in the Dakar Rally. 

Laia Sanz (Gas Gas) hasn't had the best road to the Dakar having been diagnosed with Lyme's disease earlier this year but the 'Queen of the Dakar' has been impressive and is currently in 25th overall. A very respectable result. 

Whilst we talk of good performances and potential winners. There have been riders who dropped out of the Dakar for various reasons. Mechanical issues or minor injuries, but we have also had the withdrawal of Hero Motorsport's CS Santosh who was resuscitated by a fellow competitor on a stage and was taken to hospital with a suspected dislocated shoulder and head trauma. His team later issued a statement saying that CT scans have shown "no major issue that could impact his full recovery". The Indian rider remains in hospital on route to a full recovery.

Malle Moto (Original By Motul) 

A clear leader has emerged in the grueling Original By Motul category, Maurizio Gerini. Gerini has taken the lead in the overall rankings by four minutes and 24 seconds over Arunas Gelazninkas, whilst the reigning champion Emanuel Gyenes is over 40 minutes behind. 

Forty minutes might seems like an impossible deficit to overturn, but as we know anything can happen in the Dakar Rally. It's still all to play for! 

The Kalahari Madala "Kalahari old man" James Alexander joined the Original By Motul class this year and has enjoyed every minute. However, the past few days have been a right old challenge for the rider from Botswana. He had suffered from steering issues which saw him finish stage five very late at night. Battling with steering issues again on stage six after having no time to fix his bike a night before, James cracked on and made it to the end of stage six in the cooling evening conditions. He suffered from hypothermia arriving in the night and spent the evening in the sickbay.

After a night in the sickbay, he is feeling a lot better and has started working on his bike repairing the steering issue and servicing the bike ahead of two marathon stages. 

Cavigliasso on top. 

Nicolas Covigliasso has emerged as the favorite for this year's Quad class victory. The Argentine rider has a comfortable 33-minute buffer to his nearest rival and fellow countrymen Manuel Andujar, whilst Frenchman Alexandre Giroud who has won three stages to date finds himself 45 minutes behind. 

PHOTO CREDIT: X-Raid Mini JCW

Mr. Dakar becomes the hunted.

Monsieur Dakar Stéphane Peterhansel has not won a stage, but consistency has seen him move into the lead of the overall rankings. Whilst winning a stage poses the difficulty of opening the road. The Frenchman has played all the cards that he has been dealt and even followed rival Nasser Al-Attiyah all the way to the end of stage five.

Al-Attiyah has won three stages thus far, including the 11-kilometer prologue. Opening the road has been a rather difficult task with those behind able to capitalize on the tracks ahead. But after one week of racing, Al-Attiyah remains in contention for a potential fourth Dakar title. The Qatari driver is five minutes and 53 seconds behind Peterhansel in the overall rankings.

It's been a year to forget for the reigning Dakar Champions, as none are leading their respective categories, and this is no different in the car class. Despite winning two stages thus far, Carlos Sainz hasn't been a happy camper. The Spaniard lost over 48 minutes due to navigational issues. However, after winning stage six, he was able to gain seven minutes on Peterhansel.

El-Matador has rued the new electronic roadbook, which his navigator has struggled with. Whilst Sainz's teammate Peterhansel has had a better time of it with new co-driver (navigator) Edouard Boulanger alongside him.

It's all to play but who will come out on top? 

2009 Dakar Champion Giniel de Villiers won stage five but has suffered from neck issues. His charge was also halted by navigational issues, as were many of his rivals.

The most impressive driver/co-driver pairing thus far is Toyota Gazoo Racing SA's Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings. The #332 Hilux duo claimed a second-place finish on stage three and followed that up with a third-place finish on stage four. But, unfortunately, the South African's Dakar came to an abrupt end on stage five after Henk Lategan sustained a dislocated shoulder 17 kilometers into the stage. We can not wait to see them return in 2022! 

WRC legend Sebastien Loeb made his Dakar return after a one-year hiatus with the Bahrain Raid Xtreme team, and whilst he suffered from navigational issues. His Hunter 1 seemed like a pleasure to drive, however, early into stage six yesterday the Frenchman stopped due to a broken suspension arm and lost hours waiting for his support team to arrive. Overall Loeb is now 11 hours, 42 minutes, and 36 seconds behind the overall leader. When will his luck turn around? We do hope that he returns in 2022. 

Former Dakar competitors, Brian Baragwanath and Taye Perry joined forces for the 2021 Dakar Rally. Baragwanath came from the quads category before deciding to switch to the car's class after working with Century Racing since 2018. Whilst, 2020 Dakar finisher Taye Perry hoped to return on a bike in 2021. However, things didn't go according to plan, and after a call from Baragwanath. The two teamed up and the rest is history. 

The South African duo claimed a second-place finish on stage five just 58 seconds behind stage winner and fellow countrymen Giniel de Villiers.

History is made in the LIGHTWEIGHT VEHICLE CLASS.

A category split in two - T3 SSV and T4 Lightweight Prototypes. The T4 lightweight prototype category has made all the headlines after history was made this week. Cristina Gutiérrez Herrero became the first woman to win a stage since Jutta Kleinschmidt in 2005. Whilst her teammate Seth Quintero who was not eligible to compete a year ago, finally made his debut this year. 

Quintero made history yesterday after holding off Khalid Al-Attiyah to become the youngest competitor to win a stage at the tender age of 18. 

In addition to making history, the young American has two fingers on the T4 class win. He is just under 2 hours ahead of teammate Cristina Gutiérrez Herrero in the class. 

In the SSV class after two stages, a clear gap has emerged with Aron Domzala a mere 40 seconds ahead of teammate Auston Jones, whilst those behind the Monster Energy Can-Am duo are over 30 minutes behind in the overall rankings.

Kamaz-Master domination. 

Siarhei Viazovich emerged as a potential challenger for the Dakar title in 2021. However, his challenge came to a premature end due to ongoing mechanical issues. 

As Viazovich's challenge fell by the wayside, 35-year-old Russian Dmitry Sotnikov emerged as the clear favorite for the 2021 title. Sotnikov hasn't put a foot wrong thus far and has been a master in opening the road in the trucks category. 

Should Dmitry clinch the 2021 title, the Kamaz-Master team will claim their second ever five-year brace in the trucks category. The only driver and team capable of taking the fight to Kamaz were Petronas Iveco with Gerard De Rooy at the wheel. De Rooy clinched two Dakar titles in 2012 and 2016. However, the Dutchman has not returned this year. 

Having won four-stages of six, it's pretty clear to say that Dmitry Sotnikov is the favorite to win the 2021 Dakar title with teammates Anton Shibalov and Airat Mardeev over 37 minutes behind. 

A lot can still happen, but it's Sotnikov's title to lose from here on it! 

Written By: Junaid Samodien

Dakar 2021: Stage 6 – Motorbike lead changes yet again as Peterhansel and Al-Attiyah inseparable.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool

Written By - Franco Theron - NamWheels 

Ahead of the rest day tomorrow, the fight in both the motorbike- and car categories are intensifying. Let’s have a look at what happened today. 

Honda dominating? 

Yesterday was a good day for Honda, with Kevin Benavides claiming stage honours, even with a broken nose. The four Honda riders seem to support one another very well in this edition. Teamwork seems to be the order of the day, where one rider aims to win the stage, with the rest trading positions to open the road on the next day. 

Up to this point, Toby Price seems to be the only KTM rider, realistically being able to fight the top riders, while Ross Branch plays this part for Yamaha. 

Opening the road today, Benavides struggled to keep up with the pace, while teammate, Joan Barreda Bort spearheaded the stage early on, with Toby Price (KTM) and Ross Branch (Yamaha) hot on his back wheel. 

Just over the 200km mark, Price managed to pass the Honda of Barreda Bort, with Branch, Daniel Sanders (KTM), and Ricky Brabec (Honda) very closely behind. 

However, towards the end of the stage, Price started losing time as Branch, Barreda, and Sanders once again edged ahead. 

Barreda and Branch cleared the road, while Sanders kept Brabec and the chasing KTM’s of Price, Sam Sunderland, and Mattias Walkner behind. Yet, Brabec soon made a navigational error and fell towards the latter part of the top 10. 

It was Branch, who crossed the finish line first, but Barreda soon pipped him by a slender 48 seconds. 

This means that as we head into the rest day, Price now moves into the lead, ahead of Kevin Benavides, Cornejo Florimo (Honda), and Branch. The top 6 are, however, separated by a mere 4:23. This will surely cause for a very exciting last half of the race when it resumes on Sunday. 

Sainz on the attack 

An excellent day for South Africa yesterday, saw Giniel de Villiers take Toyota Gazoo Racing SA’S fifth stage triumph of the 2021 edition, while Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) came in a close second. 

Whilst the battle for stage honors took place, the overall battle between Stephane Peterhansel (X-Raid Mini JCW) and Nasser Al-Attiyah (Toyota Gazoo Racing SA) brewing. The latter later admitted that he found the stage very difficult, having lost more time to his French rival. Carlos Sainz (X-Raid Mini JCW) was also quick to follow, suggesting the 2021 edition to be more of a gymkhana race, rather than a navigational marathon. 

Stating that stage 5 and 6 would probably be the most important of the race, would we see Al-Attiyah throw everything at today's’ stage in a bid to regain time? 

Sainz and Peterhansel reached the first checkpoint of the day in the lead, with Al-Attiyah and Yazeed Al Rajhi (Toyota Overdrive) closely following. The latter soon started to trouble the times of Peterhansel, while Sainz cleared ahead. 

Some 48 minutes behind Peterhansel overall before today’s stage, Sainz needed to gain time on the leading two driver if he is to challenge for the win in the last week. 

Yesterday’s winner, de Villiers struggled to keep his pace from yesterday and kept within the higher top 10 places in the stage, while Baragwanath ran in a constant 5th position. 

Sebastien Loeb’s (BRX) 2021 Dakar Rally also went from bad to worse as he broke a suspension arm on the stage and had to await the support truck for repairs. It was not the rally the Frenchman had hoped for. 

Yet, all eyes were locked on the times set by Peterhansel and Al-Attiyah, with the former looking to gain more time on the Qatari. Yet, after 404 km, Al-Attiyah gained on Peterhansel, leading the Frenchman by a barely inseparable 9 seconds.  

Crossing the finish line, Sainz claimed the stage victory as he gained on his overall rivals. Al Rajhi finished second, while Al-Attiyah bested Peterhansel by only 18 seconds. 

This means that Peterhansel goes into the rest day as the leader by 5:53, with Sainz 40:39 behind Peterhansel. 

Dakar 2021: Sweet and sour day for South-Africans

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool. 

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

The 2021 Dakar Rally is now at its midway point and much can already be taken from the first week of racing. In both the motorbike- and car categories, the fight is extremely tight. 

Honda, Yamaha, and KTM seem to be inseparable with the top 5 times overall after every stage, being within seconds from one another. While Yamaha is still to win a stage in this year’s Dakar, it is Ross Branch and Andrien van Beveren, who can be said to be the most consistent of all the current top riders. 

In the car category, the X-Raid Mini’s seemed to play a very strategic game early on, but Toyota fought back with an even better approach. After stage 4, the lead between the Mini of Stephane Peterhansel (Mini) and Nasser Al-Attiyah (Toyota) was a mere 5 minutes. 

Stating that the marathon stages, leading up to-and continuing after the rest day, would be the stages to attack, Al-Attiyah knew well that these stages were two of the most technical and demanding of the edition. 

Leading up to the rest day, this is how the motorbike and car categories got on. 

Honda going strong 

Stage 4 winner, Joan Barreda Bort (Honda) started the stage first and evidently did not hold back. Having taken his 27th Dakar victory, the Spaniard was keen on climbing his way back into the overall contention. So to was his teammates, Kevin Benavides and Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo. Yet, by the second checkpoint, Barreda Bort seemed to have lost a chunk of time to the stage leaders’ duo to a navigational error. Similarly, the Yamaha of Van Beveren fell into the same error. 

For most of the stage, the Honda’s of Cornejo Florimo and Benavides led the stage, with overall contender, Xavier de Soultrait (Husqvarna) threatening the leading times. 

Benavides did, however, take the stage lead from his teammate during the end of the stage, with Barreda Bort seemingly losing more time as the stage progressed. In the end, Benavides won the stage ahead of Cornejo Florimo to make it another Honda 1-2 stage win. 

Ultimately, this also propelled Benavides into the overall lead, ahead of de Soultrait. 

Branch ever-consistent 

Signing for the Monster Energy Yamaha Rally team after two highly successful first years in the race, Ross Branch proves to once again be the ever consistent, smiling rider. 

Even more importantly, the Botswanian has remained within or close to the top 5 overall positions, even though the leaders around him are trading positions constantly. Whilst Yamaha has already seen one retirement early on, Branch proves to be the leading Yamaha rider: besting even his highly experienced teammate, van Beveren. 

This can mainly be attributed to a cautious approach and one without too many navigational errors. 

Branch is also now positioned as the sole Yamaha in the top 10 and with a shot at overall victory. A mere 8:24 behind de Soultrait and 6:18 behind Cornejo Florimo, Branch is perfectly positioned to attack on Saturday. However, Kevin Benavides on the Honda seems to have found his rhythm and is now almost 11 minutes ahead. 

Toyota vs Mini 

Just before the start of stage 5, Peterhansel was handed a one-minute penalty for unknown reasons. This would bring the leading two competitors of Peterhansel and Nasser Al-Attiyah to within four minutes. 

Opening the stage for a third time in succession, Al-Attiyah lost time to Peterhansel at the start, but quickly gained on the Frenchman to trail him by a mere 23 seconds at the 155km mark. However, by the next 197km mark, this gap grew by two minutes.  

Peterhansel reached the finish to put almost 3 more minutes into his lead over Al-Attiyah. Yet, this was not quick enough to win the stage, meaning that he will not open the road on Saturday, but rather the Toyota of de Villiers. 

Will Toyota play a tactical game with Peterhansel, come Saturday?  

South-Africans flying the flag high

It was a win-lose situation for Toyota and South-Africa. While bad news came through for Lategan, Giniel de Villiers managed to take stage honours today, recording the fastest time at every checkpoint. 

Erik van Loon (Overdrive Toyota) was hot on his heels, until Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) and Martin Prokop (Benzina Orlen) took over the contention for second on stage. 

Baragwanath looked set to make it a first stage win, until de Villiers once again bested his finishing time by a full 5:45 minutes, with Prokop finishing in third. 

It would therefore be a good day for South Africans as it would record a 1-2 stage finish. 

Sainz unable to defend his 2020 title? 

As of 2020, a three-time Dakar winner, the multiple World Rally Champion, Carlos Sainz, seems to be unable to repeat success at this years’ edition. The Spaniard lost half an hour to the leading pair of Peterhansel and Al-Attiyah on stage 3, when he made a navigational error and again lost considerable time on the fifth stage. 

Racing through the first checkpoint at 43km, he already lost 28:40 minutes to the stage leader, Giniel de Villiers (Toyota Gazoo Racing) and more importantly, around 20 minutes to his two overall contenders. 

Magical rookie Lategan

Henk Lategan (Toyota Gazoo Racing) already proved his worth in only his first year of Dakar racing. The two-time South-African cross-country driver and former rally-ace not only challenged his much more experienced teammates in the third and fourth stage, but managed to finish stage 3 in second position, whilst just being pipped by Peterhansel in the following stage to end in third. 

Starting third on stage 5, the same navigational headache as for Sainz and Sebastien Loeb (BRX) seemed to haunt the young South-African. Soon thereafter, news came through that the Lategan and his co-driver were taken to the start of the stage again for medical treatment as they rolled their Hilux in the stage. 

This is a huge blow to the race as Lategan’s form started to rival stage winning times. Would he have raced on, the South African would have certainly ended the race as the top rookie? 

Certainly, a big learning curve, may this be a future Dakar winner in the making?