Dakar 2023, Stage 6: Terrible day for Audi, Al-Attiyah the strongest

The sixth step of Dakar Rally 2023, contested between Ha'il and Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), will leave its mark until the final finish of this 45th edition. Not content with setting the scratch time this Friday January 6 and increasing their lead at the head of the operations, Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel (Toyota) benefited from the massacre within the prosecution group.

It's quite simple, the three direct pursuers of the Toyota Gazoo Racing crew have all disappeared from the rankings. The hardest blow is dealt to the hopes of the Audi Sport clan. The German giant lost its two trump cards on this stage made up of sandy areas and dunes.

Everything changed at the 212th kilometer. The eight-time winner of the Dakar in Auto was there victim of an accident. Edouard Boulanger was injured by the shock and suffered from back pain. He was airlifted by the Dakar medical service to Buraydah hospital to undergo additional examinations.

🎥 First footage of the two @audisport cars which crashed in the same place. @s_peterhansel and Édouard Boulanger had to abandon while @CSainz_oficial and @ LucasCruz74 are still trying to fix their car. 🛠# Dakar2023 pic.twitter.com/14VwkwUsue

- DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 6, 2023

His teammate at Audi Carlos Sainz, was injured in the same place. The crew, which the three-time Dakar winner made up with Lucas Cruz, was unhurt and was waiting to be able to repair his vehicle on the left front axle before trying to resume his race.

This abandonment is a dramatic turn of events for “Monsieur Dakar”. Stéphane Peterhansel started his day on a strong pace, taking the lead from km 84. The Frenchman made up a small part of his gap in the general classification on Nasser Al-Attiyah; the latter was 1'24 seconds behind at the intermediate point preceding the accident, km 207. Only Mattias Ekström remains to represent Audi in the top 10 (5th at almost 2 hours).

The Audi RS Q e-tron hybrids entered in the 2023 Dakar had been the subject of heated controversy in recent days. The FIA ​​had decided to allocate nearly 11 additional horsepower to them as part of Technology Equivalence, in order to guarantee fairer chances against the Toyota Hilux T1+ and Prodrive Hunter T1+.

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Another contender for the podium rejected in the depths of the classification, Yazeed Al-Rajhi-Dirk von Zitzewitz were stopped, due to damage, two kilometers further on than the Audis. The Saudi, third in the 2022 Dakar and whose driving style puts a strain on the mechanics of his Toyota Hilux T1+, tore off his right rear wheel. He waits for the assistance truck and obviously loses his 3rd place overall.

Yazeed Al-Rajhi and his navigator, however, kept smiling, and even found a little comfort with a little tea offered by local spectators:

Meanwhile in 215 KM 🤷‍♂️# Dakar2023 # SS6 pic.twitter.com/v5eL8zqL3d

— Yazeed Racing (@YazeedRacing) January 6, 2023

Among the places of honor, Sébastien Loeb moved up to 6th place, ahead of track rider Romain Dumas, well supported by Max Delfino aboard their new Toyota Hilux T1+.

Dakar 2023 – Ranking Stage 6:

General classification :