Dakar: Mitsubishi report on stage 5 problems

Biasion Loses Time With Navigational Error, Mayer With Puncture
Biasion: "A silly mistake"
Mayer: "We had to change a tyre"

QUARZAZATE (Marocco) - Mitsubishi Motors Motor Sports (MMSP) team driver Massimo Biasion and co-driver Tiziano Siviero finished the fifth Dakar stage in eighth place due to an navigational error. Andrea Mayer had to change a tyre before Checkpoint 3.

Biasion had been running in third position after the second passage control, but lost 17 minutes to their leading team mates. "We made a navigation mistake between the second and third passage controls and lost our place in the road book," said Biasion. "That cost us the time. It was a silly mistake."

German's Andrea Mayer noticed a puncture before the third passage control. "We tried to solve the problem by using the onboard tyre inflation system. But that didn't work so we were forced to change the wheel and therefore lost some more time." Mayer is now 14th overall.

Team mate Hiroshi Masuoka lost some time as well but due to another reason: "I began well, but I caught a car at the 60 kms point and could not find my way past. Apart from this I like Morocco. The stage was interesting - sand, rocks, sand and more rocks. Overall it was a good day for me."

-mitsubishi-