Sainz rallies back to the top
The 1990 and 2002 rally world champion completed the mountainous phase in 2 hrs 35 mins 27 secs, picking up his third stage win, reclaiming the lead after being knocked off top spot on Wednesday by Nasser Al-Attiyah.
“I think we overcame the stage well,” said Sainz. “It was very hard, including some areas which were full of mud and water that made the car slip. There were also some places where there were too many pot holes, but until now things are going well for the team.”
Sainz’ American team-mate Mark Miller (Volkswagen) finished second and remains third in the overall standings behind fellow Volkswagen driver Giniel De Villiers, who kept his place despite finishing yesterday’s stage in sixth.
Nine-time champion Stephane Peterhansel’s woes continued after the engine in his Mitsubishi Racing Lancer caught fire, effectively ending his hopes.
In the motorbike class former 450cc world champion Francisco Lopez (KTM) picked up his first stage win after crossing the line in 2 hrs 36 mins 9 secs.
He explained: “It was a very skilled phase and also very physical. There were 120km in bad conditions and after that I faced the mud, where I lost control of the bike at times.
“After that I set my mind on going after the leaders and I think I did it well. I am happy and now my objective is secure a place among the top 10. I hope I can do it in Chile, my homeland.”
His team-mate Marc Coma remained in the lead in the overall standings after coming in second, 3 mins 57 secs behind the Chilean rider.
Motorbike class title holder Cyril Despres continued his climb up the standings, adding a third-placed finish to his stage victory on Thursday to move sixth in the general standings.
The Frenchman said: “The cards were dealt during the first days and now we’re coming across the sort of stages that we are used to, where we can attack, which is the rule of the game in rally-raids.
“The problem is that when the cards were dealt, I didn’t get a good hand.”
Today is a rest day for the riders.
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