Stage report
Dakar Dakar
Dakar 2018, Stage 6: Sainz quickest ahead of rest day
Peugeot driver Carlos Sainz won the Arequipa – La Paz stage of the 2018 Dakar marathon, as the rally held its final test before the mid-event rest day.
Valentin Khorounzhiy
Edited: Jan 12, 2018, 8:32 AM
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Sainz beat teammate and rally leader Stephane Peterhansel by four minutes and six seconds to pick up his first stage win in this year's Dakar.
Taking place at altitude of around 4000 metres above sea level, the marathon's sixth stage marked the end of the opening leg in Peru, with competition moving on to the Bolivian Altiplano.
The timed part of the stage was 313km long and split into two sections, separated by a 238km neutralised zone.
Sainz arrived to the end of the first, 118km-long run with a two-minute lead, having topped the timing sheets at all three waypoints along the way.
He continued to set the pace after the road section, and more than doubled his lead by the time he arrived at the finish line.
Watch video highlights...
Settling for runner-up in the test, 13-time Dakar champion Peterhansel will head into the La Paz rest day with a 27-minute advantage over Sainz.
The rest of the chasing pack continues to be led by Toyota's Bernhard ten Brinke, despite the Dutchman losing time through the stage against his Dakar-winning squadmates Nasser Al-Attiyah and Giniel de Villiers.
Ten Brinke's deficit to Peterhansel in the general classification has increased to 1h21m, with Al-Attiyah a further four minutes down and de Villiers slotting in fifth, 11 minutes behind the Qatari.
Villagra makes inroads
Iveco's Federico Villagra recorded his second stage win in the truck category, taking five minutes and a half out of Kamaz's overall leader Eduard Nikolaev.
Villagra trailed Martin Macik after the first segment of the stage, but picked up the pace to finish almost three minutes clear of his nearest rival, Martin Kolomy.
Reigning champion Nikolaev will thus take a 53-minute lead over Villagra into the rest day, while the Argentine himself is over an hour and a half ahead of third-placed Siarhei Viazovich.
Standings after Stage 6 (Car class, top 10):
Pos. Driver / Co-driver Car Time/Gap 1
Stephane Peterhansel
Jean-Paul Cottret
Peugeot 16h25m2s 2
Carlos Sainz
Lucas Cruz
Peugeot +27m10s 3
Bernhard ten Brinke
Michel Perin
Toyota +1h20m41s 4
Nasser Al-Attiyah
Mathieu Baumel
Toyota +1h24m20s 5
Giniel de Villiers
Dirk von Zitzewitz
Toyota +1h35m59s 6
Jakub Przygonski
Tom Colsoul
Mini +2h25m16s 7
Martin Prokop
Jan Tomanek
Ford +2h25m52s 8
Khalid Al Qassimi
Xavier Panseri Peugeot +2h29m6s 9
Eugenio Amos
Sebastien Delaunay
2WD +2h30m58s 10
Patrick Sireyjol
Francois-Xavier Beguin
Cummins +3h25m35s
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Previous article Dakar 2018, Stage 6: Meo fastest, Benavides takes lead
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