Subscribe

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Motorsport prime

Discover premium content
Subscribe

Edition

Australia
Stage report

Dakar 2019, Stage 1: Al-Attiyah sets initial pace

Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa driver Nasser Al-Attiyah topped the opening stage of the 2019 Dakar Rally in Peru.

#301 Toyota Gazoo Racing SA: Nasser Al-Attiyah, Matthieu Baumel

#301 Toyota Gazoo Racing SA: Nasser Al-Attiyah, Matthieu Baumel

Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa

The Qatari completed the dune-populated 84km timed stage near Pisco, which came after a lengthy road section that started at Peruvian capital Lima, in 1h1m41s.

Al-Attiyah, a two-time Dakar winner whose most recent triumph came in 2015, ran second on the road behind reigning champion Carlos Sainz.

His Toyota Hilux set the pace at both waypoints and ultimately caught up with Sainz's X-raid Mini buggy by the time they completed the stage.

Sainz held on to second place, but was just one second clear of the lead X-raid Mini 4x4 car, that of FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies champion Jakub Przygonski.

Al-Attiyah's Gazoo Racing SA teammates Bernhard ten Brinke and Giniel de Villiers were both outpaced by the privateer Hilux of Vladimir Vasilyev.

The Russian, returning to the Dakar after instead competing in the Africa Eco Race for two years, was fourth, leading Mini 4x4 driver Yazeed Al-Rajhi, while de Villiers made up the top six and ten Brinke took eighth behind Stephane Peterhansel in a Mini buggy.

Sebastien Loeb, competing in a PH Sport-run Peugeot 3008 DKR, had a quiet start to his stint as a Dakar privateer, finishing outside the top 10 with a six-minute gap to Al-Attiyah.

He was beaten by both of his PH Sport teammates, Harry Hunt and Pierre Lachaume. Hunt slotted in in ninth ahead Mini buggy driver Cyril Despres – who had swapped co-drivers with Peterhansel for the 2019 edition.

Sometime WRC regular Martin Prokop, a top Dakar privateer driving a Ford Raptor, lost over 15 minutes before the halfway point.

In the Trucks class, reigning champion Eduard Nikolaev topped the first stage, but the Kamaz driver was only 18 seconds clear of Iveco's Ton van Genugten.

Van Genugten's teammates Federico Villagra and Gerard de Rooy completed the top four, while the rest of the Kamaz trucks took the spots from fifth to seventh.

The stage for SxS utility vehicles was likewise topped by the defending winner in Reinaldo Varela, who led Chaleco Lopez and Gerard Farres.

Stage results (top 10)

Pos. Crew Car Time/Gap
1 Nasser Al-Attiyah
Mathieu Baumel
Toyota 1h1m41s
2 Carlos Sainz
Lucas Cruz
Mini Buggy 1m59s
3 Jakub Przygonski
Tom Colsoul
Mini 4x4 2m00s
4 Vladimir Vasilyev
Konstantin Zhiltsov
Toyota 2m18s
5 Yazeed Al-Rajhi
Timo Gottschalk
Mini 4x4 2m28s
6 Giniel de Villiers
Dirk von Zitzewitz
Toyota 2m40s
7 Stephane Peterhansel
David Castera
Mini Buggy 2m57s
8 Bernhard ten Brinke
Xavier Panseri
Toyota 3m19s
9 Harry Hunt
Wouter Rosegaar
Peugeot 3m25s
10 Cyril Despres
Jean-Paul Cottret
Mini Buggy 4m25s

Be part of Motorsport community

Join the conversation
Previous article Dakar 2019, Stage 1: Barreda tops opener from Quintanilla
Next article Early leader Al-Attiyah 'clear favourite' at Dakar – Sainz

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Motorsport prime

Discover premium content
Subscribe

Edition

Australia