Dakar – Was neutralization inevitable?

The eighth stage of the Dakar sparked controversy since the special was only covered for a few kilometers for the cars. The first part of the timed course was canceled following the showers which fell in the region and the start took place in the middle of the special shortened to 288km (of the 470km initially planned). But the rain was once again the talk of the town when violent downpours disrupted the end of the day. If Guerlain Chicherit was able to win the special ahead of the Hummer of Robby Gordon and the leader Stéphane Peterhansel on Mini, Nasser Al-Attiyah found himself stranded following the flooding of the rivers.

The Qatar pilot Red Bull Rally Team remained three minutes behind its rival Team certain time. However, the Qatari was at the top of the general classification before finding himself trapped. “It was going well for us, we attacked hard, and everything was going well”, he commented on the official website of the event. “When we arrived at the river, there was three meters of water, we couldn't get through. So we called the organization, who informed us that the stage was neutralized from CP2. » The South African Giniel de Villiers who completes the provisional podium 44 minutes from the head of the race on his Toyota Hilux was also blocked by floodwaters. “It was quite a demanding stage! We didn't get stuck in the water. We simply couldn't get through, it was more than 1,50m deep, and we could see the water coming down towards us. »