• Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel maintain lead of more than 1hr 20min
• Three stages remain in DAKAR 2023
• Out-leg of Marathon Stage completed successfully

Stage 11 of the 2023 Dakar Rally saw competitors race away from the bivouac at Shaybah, in the south-eastern part of Saudi Arabia, to a remote bivouac in the Empty Quarter. The competitors have no technical support at the remote bivouac, and have to affect any repairs needed to their cars themselves. However, all three TOYOTA GAZOO Racing crews reported clean runs in their GR DKR Hilux T1+ race cars, bringing a sigh of relief to the entire team.

• Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel maintain overall lead in Dakar 2023
• Clean stages by Henk Lategan/Brett Cummings and Giniel de Villiers/Dennis Murphy
• Marathon Stage starts with Stage 11

The 2023 Dakar Rally moved to the much-feared Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia on Stage 10, as competitors tackled a short, sharp stage of only 114km. However, all the crews reported that the stage was unexpectedly difficult, with the winners requiring 1hr 48min 32sec to complete the gruelling stage. Nasser and Mathieu recorded the 4th-fastest time of the day in their GR DKR Hilux T1+, finishing 5min 45sec behind the winners. This allowed them to maintain their position at the head of the field without any problems.

They rested easy in the knowledge that teammates Giniel and Dennis were close behind them, carrying some spare parts in case the overall leaders required support. For the South African pairing, this role required them to allow Nasser and Mathieu to pass them early in the stage, as Giniel and Dennis were ahead on the road. Despite holding back during the opening part of the stage, they still went 22nd-fastest, losing just 12min 24sec to the winners on the day. They remain in 5th place overall, having extended their buffer to the crew behind them during Stage 10.

For Henk and Brett, Stage 10 brought an opportunity to strike back after the difficulties they experienced on Stage 9. However, the stage proved tougher than expected, with many tricky sections to negotiate. They had a clean run, recording the 9th-fastest time, just 7min 59sec behind the winners. They now find themselves holding steady in fourth overall, 1hr 48min 37sec behind the lead.

Lucas Moraes and Timo Gottschalk, driving a privately entered version of the Toyota Hilux T1+ are still in second place overall, 15min 49sec ahead of the crew in third place. They were third-fastest on Stage 10, relinquishing only 5min 22sec to the chasing pack.

Only four stages remain in the 2023 Dakar Rally, with Stage 11 representing the ‘out-leg’ of the Marathon Stage. The 275km-long stage will see the competitors race away from the main bivouac near Shaybah, to a remote encampment where they will have no service crew to support them – any work or repairs that need to be done on the cars has to be done by the driver and co-driver themselves, with the assistance of only fellow competitors. Stage 12 will see the competitors return to the main bivouac for a normal service at the end of the day.

The penultimate stage of the rally stretches from Shaybah to Al-Hofuf, along the Saudi border with the United Arab Emirates, before the final stage takes the rally from Al-Hofuf to the coastal city of Dammam on January 15th.

• Significant time loss for Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings on Stage 9
• Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel hold steady at head of standings
• Clean stage for Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy

Stage 9 of the 2023 Dakar Rally brought solid results for Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Mathieu Baumel; as well as Giniel de Villiers and co-driver Dennis Murphy. But for Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings, it was a stage to forget, despite the exemplary sportsmanship and camaraderie shown by Toyota Hilux T1+ privateers, Yazeed Al Rajhi and co-driver Dirk von Zitzewitz. By the time the dust had settled over Stage 9, Nasser and Mathieu had retained their lead; Giniel and Dennis had completed a clean stage; and Henk and Brett had relinquished two spots in the overall standings.

For Henk and Brett, second after eight stages of this year’s race, the day went wrong early in the ninth stage, between the Saudi capital of Riyadh and the southern town of Haradh. The pair started the stage as the 4th car into the stage, but just 18km in, they suffered a hard landing after crossing a dune. The car was still carrying a heavy fuel load, which may have been a contributing factor in the left rear damper breaking. This would normally require the crew to wait for support from the chasing truck, but for the GR DKR Hilux T1+ crew, relief came from an unexpected source.

Yazeed Al Rajhi and Dirk von Zitzewitz had run high up the order early in the race but fell foul to a damaged wheel hub in Stage 6, effectively removing them from the race for the podium. The privateers stopped to assist the stricken TGR crew, stripping the damper out of their own car, so that the factory team could continue. The process cost Henk and Brett nearly 50min, but they were able to get back up to full race pace, completing the stage in 63rd place. This dropped them down from second place after the first eight stages, to fourth place in the general ranking. They are now 1hr 46min 23sec behind Nasser and Mathieu, and only 3min behind the competitor ahead of him in third place.

For Giniel and Dennis, Stage 9 brought a clean run at last. The pair had been plagued by punctures early in multiple stages, forcing them into ‘survival mode’, costing significant time loss. The sandy terrain of Stage 9, however, seems to have worked in their favour, as the TGR crew went 7th-fastest on the stage, losing 8min 55sec to the stage winners on the day. This means that they retain their 5th place in the overall standings, with five tough stages in the Empty Quarter to come.

Race leaders Nasser and Mathieu drove another steady stage, finding a good rhythm and measured pace, despite the many water crossings that marked Stage 9. The TGR crew were meant to start the stage as the second car on the road, but the competitor ahead of them missed their start time, forcing Nasser and Mathieu to open the road. They did a perfect job of this, and were just 3sec slower over the 359km-long stage than Giniel and Dennis, maintaining a comfortable 1hr 21min 57sec lead to second place in the overall ranking.

With Henk and Brett moving down the order to fourth place, Brazil’s Lucas Moraes, driving a privately entered Toyota Hilux T1+ together with co-driver Timo Gottschalk, have moved up into second place in the overall standings. The Dakar rookie driver and his experienced navigator are having a dream rally so far, and they’ll be hoping for similar results as the event shifts into the sands of the Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia.

Stage 10 is the first of a series of short, sharp stages that mark the second week of the race. This one starts in the town of Haradh, with a long liaison of 467km. This will be followed by a stage of 114km, and a final liaison of 42km, bringing the drivers and co-drivers to the bivouac at Shaybah, where the support crews will remain encamped for three days, while the competitors complete the Empty Quarter Marathon Stages. The race will conclude in the city of Dammam on January 15th after fourteen Stages.