Peterhansel goes on the attack

Routed mainly off-road, in a completely desert region, this special stage was quite short (182 km) but very difficult, as Guerlain Chicherit explains to us: “ The recent rains had dug nasty and aggressive gullies, the ground was soft, with, icing on the cake, a small line of dunes to cross, about ten kilometers long. The dunes were irregular, and it was very hot. Many will suffer in this area. »

« Personally, on this tricky terrain, I didn't feel like attacking. I started in second position, and I quickly got scared. Stéphane Peterhansel caught up with us and passed us easily. I tried to follow him for about thirty kilometers, but he left us », continued Guerlain Chicherit. “ In rough terrain, no one can go faster than Stéphane, he has an extraordinary vision of the terrain? »

Indeed, the ranking at the end of the special confirmed this analysis. Peterhansel won in just under three hours, relegating Sainz at 5:44, while Al Attiyah and Miller finished more than ten minutes behind. Overall, the order is the same, with Peterhansel leading, ahead of Sainz, Al Attiyah and Miller, all grouped in less than a quarter of an hour.

The two big losers of the day were Nani Roma and Giniel de Villiers. Both were reported as having rolled over, with badly damaged cars. Even if they manage to repair with the help of rapid assistance trucks, for them the chances of victory have almost disappeared?