Dakar 2023, Stage 6 – Stéphane Peterhansel abandons, Édouard Boulanger injured

Le Dakar Rally 2023 took a dramatic turn for the Audi team in this sixth stage contested between Ha'il and Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). Ranked second in the competition, 22'36'' behind leaders Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel (Toyota) at the start of this special this Friday January 6, Stéphane Peterhansel and Édouard Boulanger abandoned.

The eight-time winner of the Dakar in Auto was the victim of an accident at the 212th kilometer. 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 winner of the Dakar made up with Lucas Cruz, is unhurt and is waiting to be able to repair their vehicle before trying to resume their 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 had a loss of 1'24" at the intermediate point preceding the accident, km 207.

The hybrid Audi RS Q e-tron 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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