Rally-Raid
Loeb and Al-Attiyah neck and neck at Baja Aragon
Sébastien Loeb and Fabien Lurquin (BRX) winners of the first stage of the Baja Aragon 2021. © Paulo Maria / DPPI
The film of the moment, Kaamelott not to name it, is displayed on the fronts of cinemas with this slogan: “He doesn’t come back to sort the lentils. » This warning also applies to the nine-time world rally champion, Sébastien Loeb.
The Alsatian had chosen Baja Aragon (Spain) for his first competition since a disastrous Dakar 2021 (abandonment at the marathon stage) in Saudi Arabia. Six months of reflection, during which he parted ways with his historic sidekick, Daniel Elena, replaced by the Belgian Fabian Lurquin in the crucial role of co-pilot.
In the summer meadows near Teruel, the leader of the Bahrain Raid Xtreme team found his Hunter T1 prepared by Prodrive with a smile. The event only has two stages, but he has already gone halfway towards a hypothetical first success with the English team.
Indeed, the special of this Friday July 23 consisted of 177 km timed on terrain reminiscent of the Rally from Andalusia. Despite a puncture, the former representative Peugeot in the Dakar reached the finish after 2h20'12'' of effort, a small second ahead of Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel (Toyota)!
“It was great to drive today, said Sébastien Loeb. The tracks, mostly winding, looked a bit like dirt. WRC. It's my first Baja, but the feeling is good. We had a small navigation error, but our pace is satisfactory. »
Sebastien Loeb & Nani Roma give their review of the first day of @LowAragon – the day we won our first stage.#BajaAragon2021 #BajaAragon #dakar pic.twitter.com/Lv5h3Ix0Fg
- Bahrain Raid Xtreme (@BRaidXtreme) July 23, 2021
The red 4×4 will lead the way on Saturday, and that could have an impact on its race. “The plan is to attack. I will have to “sweep” for the others behind me, it will not be easy because I will have to attack while avoiding mistakes and taking care of the tires. It will be a difficult day. »
In third row, we find the beginner crew Mattias Ekström-Emil Bergkvist (Mini 4×4) which definitely continues, slowly but surely, to progress in the rally-raid hierarchy.
Medhi Casaurang
Passionate about the history of motorsport across all disciplines, I learned to read thanks to AUTOhebdo. At least that's what my parents tell everyone when they see my name inside!
Read also
Rally-Raid
Rally-Raid Portugal - The 3rd stage causes the retirement of Chicherit, the slowdown of Loeb, the roll of Al-Rajhi and the victory of Al-Attiyah
0
Comments
*The space reserved for logged in users. Please connect to be able to respond or post a comment!
1 Comment (s)
To write a comment
Medhi Casaurang
24/07/2021 at 06:34 a.m.
[…] to be decisive in the duel between Sébastien Loeb (Prodrive) and Nasser Al-Attiyah (Toyota). The Frenchman and the Qatari were only separated by a second before returning to battle in the meadows around Teruel this Saturday 24 […]