Stage 7 Riyadh β Wadi ad Dawasir π
A mental shift occurs when the race resumes. But the confidence gained in the first week should not go to the driversβ heads, whether they are competing for the win or simply for the honour of conquering the course.
βΉοΈ Stage info βΉοΈ
Stage 7 Riyadh – Wadi ad Dawasir
The dayβs sandy and relatively fast tracks are occasionally lined with dense bushes, but do not present any major hazards, except perhaps the risk of rushing.
When the total distance approaches 900 kilometres, concentration is also crucial, even on liaison sections.
π Another Thunderous One-Two π
WADI AD DAWASIR β After Team De Rooy already secured an impressive one-two finish among the trucks during Stage 6 of the Dakar Rally on Friday, the Dutch team did it again on Sunday during Stage 7. Vaidotas Ε½ala won the stage from Riyadh to Wadi Ad Dawasir, with teammate Ales Loprais finishing just 1:23 behind him. Both drivers closed the gap on standings leader Mitchel van den Brink, now trailing by 33:02 and 34:16 respectively.
“It’s been a long time coming. Hopefully it won’t be the last win”, said an elated Ε½ala. “I knew we’d get a stage win eventually. But you need a little luck too.”
Early in the stage, it didn’t look like he was going to win. Ε½ala: “We were stuck in Mitchel’s dust. Later we passed Loprais.” And within a kilometer, he came across Van den Brink again, who had a flat tire. Ε½ala took the lead and cruised to the finish with no one breathing down his neck.
π #604 NΓΈrdis Team de Rooy FPT π
Loving it
“Once we hit the front, there was no dust to deal with. I really enjoyed the second half of the stage without a truck ahead of us. The win was thanks to Paulo (Fiuza, ed.) for his brilliant navigation. Overall, it was a true navigation day.”
With his victory, Ε½ala will be the first truck to start on Monday. “We’ve got a ten-minute gap on the truck behind us. I think it’ll be just as dusty as today. The overall standings are tightening upβthat’s good news.”
One flat tire
That’s not something he expected a few days ago. “A few days ago it looked like we were out of contention, but now we’re right back in it. P1 is pretty far ahead, but P2 is really closeβ6 minutes. That’s one flat tire. Of course Loprais will be pushing hard too, but anything’s still possible. We’ve got a lot of days left. We’ll see. Everyone hits trouble at some point. It all comes down to who has the least. Right now we’ve got a real shot at the podium.”
π #602 Instatrade Loprais Team de Rooy FPT π
Ε½ala’s win meant he took over third place in the standings from teammate Loprais. Still, the Czech driver was happy with his second-place stage finish. “We gave it everything and pushed hard, especially with Ε½ala and Van den Brinke”, he reflected.
Eating dust
“But at one point we got stuck behind a car. We spent fifty kilometers eating his dust, and that cost us a lot of time at a waypoint where we had to turn around. That’s where the car got past us, and after that we were eating his dust all the way to the finish.”
Other than that, Sunday’s stage featured beautiful dunes and a fast pace, Loprais said. “There were stretches where we really enjoyed ourselves. It was great, and I’m especially happy because I had a rough rest day. I had diarrhea, so it was an absolutely miserable night, but everything turned out fine. Thank God I’m feeling better now. In the end we pushed hardβmaybe even harder than usual today. We put in a really solid result and we’re sitting pretty.”
Results
Stage 7 Riyadh – Wadi ad Dawasir
| Stage Rank | Number | Driver | Time | Gap to first |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 604 | Vaidotas Zala | 4h27m24s | – |
| 2 | 602 | Ales Loprais | 4h28m47s | 1m23s |
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