ALL FOUR TOYOTA GAZOO Racing CREWS SURVIVE DAKAR MARATHON STAGE
All four TOYOTA GAZOO Racing crews made it safely back to the bivouac at Haradh after Stage 11, where the team’s technical crews were on stand by to service and prepare the Toyota Hilux for the final stage of the 2020 Dakar Rally. The 744-kilometre penultimate stage took crews from the Marathon Bivouac at Shubaytah which included a special stage of 379 kilometres starting with 80 kilometres of dune crossings.
Nasser Al-Attiyah and navigator Mathieu Baumel pushed throughout the second leg of the Marathon Stage in an attempt to make up the 17min 46sec they lost due to navigational challenges on Stage 10. The pair powered the Hilux to second place on the stage to come home just 10 seconds off the lead, and reducing their overall lead gap to 8min 3sec. Nasser and Mathieu were hoping to use the final stage of the event to push for victory in their Dakar Rally title defence, but the final special stage has been shortened by the organisers from 374 kilometres to just 167 kilometres, leaving the crew with a near-impossible target.
It was another solid performance by Giniel de Villiers and navigator Alex Haro on the return leg of the Marathon Stage, crossing the finish line 12min 14sec behind the leaders. The pair reported another clean run in terms of car performance and reliability, moving up to fifth place overall with a gap of 1hr 6min 34sec.
The penultimate stage also saw a sterling performance by Bernhard ten Brinke and navigator Tom Colsoul who finished the stage in fourth place, losing just 10min 14sec to the stage winners. The pair maintain their seventh position in the overall standings, trailing the next spot by just 4min 55sec.
Following repairs overnight by the crew of the damage to the Hilux endured on Stage 10, Fernando Alonso and navigator Marc Coma continued the penultimate stage of the pair’s first-ever Dakar Rally together from 113th place on the road. Showing true determination and sheer grit, the pair made a superb recovery on Stage 11 to bring their battle-worn Hilux back to the bivouac eighth fastest. Ultimately, the roll on Stage 10 cost them a potential overall Top 10 finish, but they look on track to hold on to 13th place overall.
The final stage of the 2020 Dakar Rally will take the crews from Haradh back towards the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh. The rally will conclude at the newly built entertainment city of Qiddiyah, 40 kilometres from Riyadh. Competitors will take on a shortened special stage of 167 kilometres with 262 kilometres of liaison, bringing the total route length to 429 kilometres. Once in Qiddiyah, competitors will complete an untimed race called the “Qiddiyah Trophy” before heading to the finishers’ podium.
Glyn Hall, Team Principal: “Well, this was the penultimate day of the race and, after the second part of yesterday’s stage was cancelled, today became really important to us. The good news was that the trucks were moved further down the order for the start, so even though Nasser started in 17th place, we had hoped he would be able to attack. He had a huge mountain to climb to catch up the 17-minute deficit in order to get to the front and he took significant time out of the leaders. But now we’ve just found out that tomorrow’s final stage has just been shortened to 167km and I must admit I’m feeling pretty sad at the moment, as I don’t believe we have enough stage distance left to make up the time.”
Nasser Al-Attiyah (No. 300): “Today’s stage really isn’t a big deal because I think we lost our chance for victory yesterday already. First, we made a mistake with the navigation and then a long section of stage was cancelled, so we didn’t have the opportunity to make up more time. We really tried to push today, but it wasn’t easy. So, now we have to protect second place. But there’s still one stage left and nobody can predict the outcome.”
Giniel de Villiers (No. 304): “It wasn’t easy, yesterday or today. There were lots of complicated dunes with a lot of big drops so the stage didn’t allow you to get comfortable at all. Sometimes you would brake for a crest, and you’re upset with yourself for braking too much; then other times, you’re really happy you braked, as there’s a 10 or 15 metre drop on the other side. It was a case of survival and the first part of the stage this morning was really tricky over the first 100 kilometres. Luckily, the sand was wet, otherwise it would probably have been a lot more difficult. The rest of the stage was fine; we had a good time and we are happy to be here.”
Bernhard ten Brinke (No. 307): “It was another good day and we pushed quite hard as we’re just a few minutes behind Giniel and Alex. In terms of the general ranking, we made progress today, going from seventh to sixth. We were the fourth car on the road for today’s stage and we’re happy considering the tough terrain we encountered in the stage.”
Fernando Alonso (No. 310): “I think the start of the first part of the Marathon Stage wasn’t ideal, with the roll in the first kilometre. After we repaired the car, I think we did a good job from there. The second part of the stage was cancelled by the race directors so we had more time for repairs. The second part of the marathon today was difficult because we started from 113th position. So, we started behind the trucks and everyone; and the dunes were very soft. But we managed to finish the marathon without too many dramas, and now there’s only one day left to finish my first Dakar Rally.”
2020 Dakar Rally Day 11 Results:
2nd No. 300 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel, +10sec
4th No. 307 Bernhard ten Brinke/Tom Colsoul, +10min 14sec
6th No. 304 Giniel de Villiers/Alex Haro, +12min 14sec
8nd No. 310 Fernando Alonso/Marc Coma, +16min 25sec
2020 Dakar Rally Overall Results After Stage 11:
2nd No. 300 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel, +10min 17sec
5th No. 304 Giniel de Villiers/Alex Haro, +1hr 6min 34sec
7th No. 307 Bernhard ten Brinke/Tom Colsoul, +1hr 17min 50sec
13th No. 310 Fernando Alonso/Marc Coma, +4hr 43min 18sec
CHALLENGING STAGE 10 FOR TOYOTA GAZOO Racing AT 2020 DAKAR RALLY
Stage 10 of the 2020 Dakar Rally proved to be one of drama for TOYOTA GAZOO Racing with two crews losing valuable time. Dakar title defenders, Nasser Al-Attiyah and navigator Mathieu Baumel suffered with mid-stage navigation, losing 17min 46sec. Fernando Alonso and navigator Marc Coma rolled their Toyota Hilux shortly after starting the 680-kilometre stage when crossing a steep sand dune. The crew emerged unscathed but the car sustained a broken windscreen and bent suspension components.
At around midday, the rally organisers decided to stop the Marathon Stage which took crews from Haradh to Shubaytah at the 345-kilometre mark citing safety concerns due to emergency response resources being stretched following a day of attrition, as well as worsening weather conditions which grounded helicopters. Competitors were guided to the Marathon Bivouac via the liaison route.
Nasser and Mathieu crossed the finish line in 17th place without any technical issues. The stage finish position, which determines the crew’s starting position for Stage 11, should allow them to attack and reduce the lead gap in the hope of keeping their title defence alive. With two stages remaining, Nasser and Mathieu remain runners-up in the overall standings, but with the lead gap increasing to 18min 10sec.
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s fastest crew on Stage 10 were Giniel de Villiers and navigator Alex Haro who finished the stage third fastest. Despite losing 4min 26sec on the stage, they continue to hold on to sixth place overall. They are now within 4min 44sec of fifth place and will continue to look at closing the gap in the final stages of the race.
Bernhard ten Brinke and navigator Tom Colsoul reported a clean run through the feared Marathon Stage where crews will not have the benefit of a service by the team’s mechanics, instead relying only on themselves and fellow competitors to make necessary repairs. The pair brought their Toyota Hilux to the Shubaytah bivouac sixth fastest on the stage, 6min 40sec behind the lead and maintain their seventh overall position with a gap of 1hr 15min 39sec to the lead.
Following their roll, Fernando and Marc set off after a brief pause to check each other’s conditions before setting off immediately. The pair stopped to attend to the punctures sustained during the roll and repair bent suspension components. Before setting off again, Fernando and Marc removed the cracked windscreen which impacted their visibility, continuing to the end of the shortened stage wearing goggles to keep the dust out. They lost a total of 1hr 17min 33sec on the stage finish in 55th place, but were immediately back up to a competitive pace after on-stage repairs. As a result of the time loss, the crew are now in 14th place overall, 4hrs 34min 56sec behind the leaders.
The penultimate stage of the 2020 Dakar Rally will take crews on a 744-kilometre route from the Marathon Bivouac in Shubaytah back to their teams still in the primary bivouac in Haradh. Stage 11 features a 379-kilometre special which will start with 80 kilometres of dune crossings, before tackling faster tracks and rocky crossings towards the comfort of their teams.
Glyn Hall, Team Principal: “We had some drama with both Nasser and Fernando today, but unfortunately we don’t have much detail as the crews are staying at the Marathon Bivouac in Shubaytah, more than 600 kilometres away. We do know that Nasser and Mathieu had difficulties with navigation and that Fernando and Marc rolled their Hilux very early in the stage. Thankfully the crew were unhurt, but the car was lightly damaged. They made some road-side repairs and continued without a windscreen, but made it safely to the bivouac. I’m sure they’ll be able to do more repairs tonight, and should be back on the pace again tomorrow.”
Nasser Al-Attiyah (No. 300): “The stage started really well for us and we quickly caught up with the car in front of us. But then both of us struggled to find a waypoint, which cost us a few minutes. Unfortunately, we took the wrong track after finding the spot and we ended up doing 20 kilometres extra. We made our way back but lost about 18 minutes. That’s the way the game works and tomorrow is still a long stage. It isn’t over yet and tomorrow’s stage starts with 80 kilometres of difficult dunes, so anything can happen. But today was a little bit disappointing for us.”
Giniel de Villiers (No. 304): “Today’s stage was only 230 kilometres long, with the second part cancelled due to safety. It was a really difficult stage and quite dangerous with many sharp dunes. The visibility was also a problem this morning due to the high wind speeds. We decided to take a cautious approach and finished in third place. Tomorrow promises to be another difficult stage but we’ll try our best as always.”
Bernhard ten Brinke (No. 307): “It was quite a nice stage although we found it difficult and quite dangerous, with many dune slip faces. We did find the shortened stage somewhat too short to our liking, but it was probably better for the car as we made it here with no damage. The Hilux is in perfect shape, so we are in a good position to take on tomorrow’s stage.”
Fernando Alonso (No. 310): “We rolled the car early on in the stage which changed our original plans. In general, I think we had a good day despite the roll, because we didn’t lost too much time. We lost a few places in the overall standings but I’m happy to have experienced another challenging day at the Dakar. After the roll, we had to change the wheels and suspension arm because we felt something strange. We felt 100% after that, until the stage was stopped by the organisers. In the end, it was better for us to spend a bit more time at the bivouac so we could wait for the assistance truck and try to repair the windscreen for tomorrow. I think we were quite lucky today; to get to the end of the stage and still be in 14th place overall. Our Hilux is still running and we didn’t sustain too much damage. We are really lucky to be here and we are ready to start the stage tomorrow. The Dakar is a really tough race and it proves itself to be challenging every day. We won’t give up. We aren’t here just to take part. We’re here to race, to try and set good times, to win stages and to do well. That is what we enjoy doing.”
2020 Dakar Rally Day 10 Results:
3rd No. 304 Giniel de Villiers/Alex Haro, +4min 26sec
6th No. 307 Bernhard ten Brinke/Tom Colsoul, +6min 40sec
17nd No. 300 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel, +17min 46sec
55th No. 310 Fernando Alonso/Marc Coma, +1hr 17min 33sec
2020 Dakar Rally Overall Results After Stage 10:
2nd No. 300 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel, +18min 10sec
6th No. 304 Giniel de Villiers/Alex Haro, +1hr 2min 23sec
7th No. 307 Bernhard ten Brinke/Tom Colsoul, +1hr 15min 39sec
14th No. 310 Fernando Alonso/Marc Coma, +4hr 34min 56sec
NASSER AL-ATTIYAH WITHIN 30 SECONDS OF OVERALL LEAD AS ALL TOYOTA GAZOO Racing CREWS NOW IN TOP 10 AFTER DAKAR STAGE 9
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s Nasser Al-Attiyah and navigator Mathieu Baumel closed to within a mere 24 seconds of the 2020 Dakar Rally lead with a blistering performance on Stage 9 which saw crews travel some 868 kilometres from Wadi Al Dawasir to Haradh in eastern Saudia Arabia. The crew brought their Toyota Hilux home in a strong position to defend their Dakar crown, posting the second fastest time of the day and losing just 15 seconds to the leaders while gaining 6min 16sec in the overall standings.
The defending champions were the 11th car on the road, meaning they had tracks to follow in the desert and allowing them to attack with confidence. Nasser and Mathieu pushed throughout the 410-kilometre special stage and took advantage when his closest rivals suffered a puncture and navigational issues.
All four TOYOTA GAZOO Racing crews are now within the Top 10 of the overall rankings following yet another sterling performance by Fernando Alonso and navigator Marc Coma on Stage 9 to climb three places in the overall rankings to 10th as the pair continue to push themselves to the limit.
Giniel de Villiers and navigator Alex Haro sustained a puncture early on Stage 9, losing nearly two minutes to change the tyre. Nevertheless, Giniel and Alex lost only 11min 16sec to bring their Hilux home eighth fastest and continue to hold on to their sixth place overall. The pair will set their sights firmly on fifth place overall which is currently 8min 16sec away with three stages remaining.
Coming home in seventh place on Stage 9 are Bernhard ten Brinke and navigator Tom Colsoul, losing 8min 30sec to the leaders. The crew reported another clean run but were unable to match the pace of the front-runners. Despite this, the pair moved up in the overall rankings to seventh with a gap to the leaders of 1hr 8min 59sec.
Dakar rookie Fernando and his more experienced navigator Marc made quick work to overtake the road opener within the first 100 kilometres and spent the remaining 300 kilometres of the stage effectively as the road opener for the first time at the pair’s first Dakar Rally together. A clean stage saw the crew cross the finish line ninth fastest on the stage despite having no tracks to follow, losing 13min 3sec to the leaders. Fernando is also now the highest placed “Dakar Rookie” in the 2020 edition of the legendary race.
Stage 10 is the Marathon Stage of the 2020 Dakar Rally which will be competed over a total distance of 608 kilometres, of which 534 kilometres will be the timed special stage from Haradh to Shubaytah. The first part of the route will send crews into the vast off-road expanses of the Rub’ al Khali, also known as the “Empty Quarter”, a 650,000km2 area on the Arabian Peninsula which makes up the world’s largest sand desert. After an initial high-speed, off-road course, crews will need to traverse the final 30 kilometres featuring sand dune crossings.
The Marathon Stage is unique because crews will not have the benefit of a service by the team’s mechanics. Repairs, if needed, are done by the crews themselves with no outside assistance and using tools and spare parts they could carry with them at the small bivouac in Shubaytah. They will return to the bivouac in Haradh at the end of Stage 11 where TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s technical crews will once again take over service and repair duties.
Glyn Hall, Team Principal: “It was another big day for the team, and a great one for Nasser and Mathieu, who closed to within 25 seconds of the lead. Finishing just 15 seconds behind the stage winners after 400 kilometres of racing is just incredible, and you could tell by Nasser’s eyes that he pushed extremely hard today. It wasn’t in the plan for Fernando to open the road today, but he had to take over the duties and opened for over 300 kilometres and did a great job.”
Nasser Al-Attiyah (No. 300): “We’re right on the limit and I’m quite relieved to have finished today’s stage. It really wasn’t easy, as we started quite far back. We struggled with a lot of dust and had to pass a lot of cars, but we decided to push really hard in order to close the gap. Now the gap is just 24 seconds, which is amazing after nearly 5,000 kilometres of racing. Tomorrow brings new challenges, but we’ll do our best to get another good result.”
Giniel de Villiers (No. 304): “It was a fairly technical start to the stage, but unfortunately we had a flat early on. The second part of the stage was again much faster, with some dune crossings towards the end. But it all went well for us. The pace for the leading pack today was astounding and with Nasser now just 24sec behind in the overall standings. We’re all in for an interesting end to the race.”
Bernhard ten Brinke (No. 307): “We started the stage okay and in the beginning we were really fast. The track was really fast and technical and the car felt really good. After the neutralisation, things became a bit boring for 80 kilometres where we only had to concentrate on the navigation. The stage ended with some dunes and rocks and we decided to slow down a touch in order to avoid punctures. Looking at the overall classification, we’ve moved up a place; but we’re also in a good position for tomorrow’s stage.”
Fernando Alonso (No. 310): “It was a good day with another new experience for me. We had to open the route after overtaking the first car early in the stage and we spent 350km opening the road as the first car. We also crossed the finish line as the first car out of the stage which was great. I’m happy with the day and also with our ninth place on the stage which gives us a good starting position for tomorrow’s stage in the dunes. So, we have high hopes for tomorrow again.”
2020 Dakar Rally Day 9 Results:
2nd No. 300 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel, +15sec
7th No. 307 Bernhard ten Brinke/Tom Colsoul, +8min 30sec
8th No. 304 Giniel de Villiers/Alex Haro, +11min 16sec
9th No. 310 Fernando Alonso/Marc Coma, +13min 3sec
2020 Dakar Rally Overall Results After Stage 9:
2nd No. 300 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel, +24sec
6th No. 304 Giniel de Villiers/Alex Haro, +57min 57sec
7th No. 307 Bernhard ten Brinke/Tom Colsoul, +1hr 8min 59sec
10th No. 310 Fernando Alonso/Marc Coma, +3hrs 17min 23sec
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