Dakar – Nasser Al-Attiyah throws in the towel

Monday morning, Nasser Al-Attiyah was still a serious candidate for final victory. But fate decided otherwise during the 9th stage of this Dakar 2013. Faced with numerous problems with his engine, the Qatari driver made a series of stops between Tucuman and Cordoba, seeing his dreams of success disappear. The last stop, which occurred four kilometers from the finish line, was one too many. The winner of the Dakar in 2011 did not leave this Tuesday morning.

It's a hard pill to swallow for the Qatari, who was the last one capable of putting pressure on Stéphane Peterhansel, now solid leader of the general classification. With this withdrawal, the Frenchman now seems untouchable and a historic 11th coronation opens his arms. But this abandonment is also a hard blow for Qatar Red Bull Rally team. After a very good start to the competition, with four victories in six stages (one for Carlos Sainz, three for Nasser Al-Attiyah) the team sees its two buggies out of the race; the Spaniard having had to abandon on the sixth stage, also due to engine failure. The fault, perhaps, is the youth of their cars, developed in just 5 months by Red Bull Motorsports.

In Cordoba, Nasser Al-Attiyah promised that he would do everything to come back next year, even more successful. For his part, Carlos Sainz is waiting to know what his future will be with this formation. In 2014, do we take the same ones and start again?