It’s been just over a month since the Dakar ended, but it seems that the mythical raid has lasted over time. The Abu Dhabi appointment returns to relive the duel between Al Attiyah and Loeb and coincidentally, he does it in the same way as during the Saudi Arabian race. just change the absence of Audi in a fight where, the Toyota of the Qatari, stays again unrivaled for victory at the first exchange. It is clear that everything will depend on the reliability that the Hilux maintains from here to the end, since it is only the first stage of five, but the history of the Japanese car leaves a very favorable scenario where, in case Nasser falls, his relief would be another Toyota. There is no room for concern.
Yes they did, and a lot besides, Loeb and his co-driver Fabian during the beginning of the stage. The Hunter suffered a cooling problem at kilometer 39 without even reaching the first checkpoint and that’s the end of the story. Because once again they were optimistic, they worked to solve the problem, but they could not complete a “frustrating” stage that leaves them out of the race but not out of the fight for the W2RC World Championship. They learned it from the Dakar, where Al Attiyah took the Touareg but the Frenchman led by a number of victories that he intends to continue adding in Abu Dhabi, after the initial triumph of the Qatari, who beat Al Rajhi and Lateghan, second and third respectively, by just over six minutes.
The Saudi pilot is fully involved in a points comeback with which he seeks to climb to the third step of the general standings. A situation very similar to that experienced by a Christina Gutierrez that after a good prologue, he sins again in the first stage. Another Dakar simulation. In this case the problem was excessive and unexpected consumption that left her lying without fuel before reaching the refueling area. The woman from Burgos had to be attended by her partner Austin Jones, who gave up seven minutes with the winner Quintero, for helping the Spanish. Much more severe was the breach of a Cristina who he left 57 minutes in the fight for victory, although T3 can still do a lot of laps…
Honda strengthens its dominance
Much less changed history for the motorcycle category. The first stage barely changed the order of the day before, as Honda continues to strengthen its dominance thanks to the victory of a Quintanilla, who was seconded again by his partner Adrien Van Beveren. The fastest in the prologue once again dominated, with the Chilean gaining a two-minute advantage over the Frenchman and three over Branch, the third in discord. It was about to be the complete joy for the Japanese brand, since Cornejo finished fourth, ahead of a Price that continues to abdicate before the dominance of the brand of the golden wing. Although we must not forget that The days in the desert can be very long…
Classification Stage 1 cars
Enlarge
Classification Stage 1 motorcycles
Enlarge