Sainz led almost the entire way in the 46th edition of Dakar in Saudi Arabia, eventually claiming the overall victory by 1hr20m25s over the Overdrive Toyota of Guillaume de Mevius.
The Spaniard didn’t win a single individual stage for only the third time in his Dakar career, which dates back to his first outing with Volkswagen in 2006, but he was able to outshine his rivals with a series of consistent drives as he avoided the misfortunes that beset his main rivals.
It wasn’t a completely trouble-free 17th participation in the Dakar for Sainz, however, who suffered his first setback in the Prologue where he could only finish 48th, compromising his starting position for the rally proper.
But the 61-year-old quickly recovered from that blow to put himself immediately back in the fight and took the lead of the overall rally on Stage 2.
Saudi driver Yazeed Al-Rajhi (Overdrive) did move in front the following day with an exceptional performance, but he left the way clear for Sainz after overturning his Toyota Hilux in the 48-hour Stage 6.
In the second week of the rally, Sainz more or less retained the 20-minute lead he inherited from Al-Rajhi in the face of stiff competition from his former World Rally Championship team-mate Loeb and was already looking as the favourite for top honours when the Frenchman lost an hour on the penultimate stage with damaged suspension.
With Prodrive rival Loeb out of the running, Sainz could afford to take his foot off the throttle and make his way safely to the finish line.
Reaching the bivouac at Yanbu just outside the top 10 on Friday, the Audi driver wrapped up his fourth career title in Dakar (not counting his 2008 triumph in the Central European Rally) and joined the list of the most successful drivers in the history of the rally-raid.
Photo by: A.S.O.
#203 Bahrain Raid Xtreme Prodrive Hunter: Sebastien Loeb, Fabian Lurquin
He also accomplished the feat of winning Dakar with four different manufacturers, with his previous successes all coming with different brands (Volkswagen, Peugeot and Mini).
Significantly, it also marked Audi’s first triumph in Dakar, with the German marque having only entered the Dakar in 2022 with its ambitious electric-powered RS Q e-tron.
The result marks a fitting send-off for Audi from Dakar, which looks set to pull the plug on its last remaining factory programme in order to put all its weight behind its upcoming Formula 1 project in 2026 with Sauber.
Audi was in contention for a 1-2 finish until two-time DTM champion Mattias Ekstrom suffered mechanical issues on Stage 7, leaving Sainz as its sole contender for victory.
But in an exemplary display of team work, both Ekstrom and Stephane Peterhansel – whose bid for a 15th Dakar triumph was derailed with a series of issues in the first week – assisted Sainz’s bid for victory throughout the second day, making sure he had cover during tricky rocky terrains.
This was in stark contrast to Prodrive, where Bahrain Raid Extreme driver Loeb was left largely alone in the wake of Nasser Al-Attiyah’s exit.
Loeb emerged as Sainz’s main rival for victory following his exceptional comeback victory on Stage 6, but he needed to overcome a 30-minute deficit having lost a considerable amount of time on days 1 and 3 with punctures and other issues.
Loeb immediately cut Sainz’s lead by a third by winning Stage 7 and was then able to get within five minutes of the Spaniard on Monday, only to undo his good work by getting lost in the desert with a navigation mistake.
Loeb was back within 13 minutes of Sainz on the penultimate day when he hit a rock after landing from a crest, damaging his suspension.
With Al-Attiyah, who had moved to Prodrive from Toyota over the winter, having exited the rally with a series of problems on his Hunter, the nine-time WRC champion had to wait for more than an hour until another Prodrive customer entry arrived on the scene and had the spare parts he needed to repair his car.
That allowed de Mevius to secure a second-place finish in his maiden outing in the Dakar’s Ultimate/T1+ class, as Loeb had to settle for the final spot on the podium despite winning five of the 12 stages, including Friday’s finale.
More to follow
