Dakar 2020

Ten South African entries for Dakar 2020 in Saudi Arabian Desert

It is almost Dakar time again and Southern Africa will be well represented when 2020 event blasts off for two weeks of racing through brand new territory across the Saudi Arabian Desert for the first time starting 5 January. No less than ten competitors will cross the Limpopo en route to the Jeddah start including two car drivers, a side-by-side racer and seven bikers.

Topping the list, former car winner Giniel de Villiers races with Spain’s Alex Bravo in Hilux 304 this year in one of four SA-run Gazoo Toyotas out to defend their Dakar title. 2018 rookie winner Hennie de Klerk meanwhile teams up with Johann Smalberger in car 354, his all-new SA-built TreasuryOne Red-Lined Nismo Nissan Navara.

Stellenbosch driver de Villiers won his Dakar when the event first visited South America ten years ago, while his Toyota team won the last SudAm race in 2018 — a good omen, perhaps? "We are getting closer to the old African Dakars again,” Giniel pointed out. “We will be completely isolated — it's been ten years since we last did that and the navigation will be interesting too. “Our objective is still victory — we must win!”

https://www.automobilsport.com/race...r-Dakar-2020-in-Saudi-Arabian-Desert,news.htm
 
RIP. :(

Veteran rider Goncalves dies in Dakar accident

Veteran Dakar Rally rider Paulo Goncalves has passed away following a crash on Sunday's seventh stage of the 2020 event in Saudi Arabia.
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Goncalves, 40, was contesting his 13th Dakar for Indian manufacturer Hero, and was lying 46th overall as the rally resumed following Saturday's rest day.

During Sunday's 546km Riyadh-Wadi Al Dawasir test, the Portuguese rider suffered a crash at the 276km mark at 10.16am local time. A medical helicopter was dispatched, and Goncalves was found unconscious having gone into cardiac arrest.

He was airlifted to Layla Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. He is the first competitor to have died contesting the Dakar since Michal Hernik in 2015.
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Stage 8 was cancelled for the bikes and quads out of respect for Paulo Goncalves.

Update on the South Africans;

Cars
  • Looking for his 17th successive race finish, Giniel de Villiers has had a solid if unspectacular rally after winning stage 2. In winning stage 2 he became the first person to win a Dakar stage in every iteration having won previously in South America and Africa. He is 6th overall, 1h5m58s behind the leader and the second-best Toyota. The 4-wheel drive Toyotas seem to lack the speed of the 2-wheel drive Minis across the desert.
  • Hennie de Klerk and Johann Smalberger are 33rd overall in a Nissan Navara.
Bikes
  • Taye Perry is 56th overall and 3rd in the women's classification. Quite a race from her as she is tiny and cannot ''paddle'' (use her feet for stability) through technical sections.
  • Kirsten Landman is 62nd overall and 4th in the women's classification.
  • Stuart Gregory is 69th overall and 12th in the Original's classification. Originals are riders that have no support, riding and maintain the bike themselves.
Other African participants;

Bikes
  • Ross Branch is 27th overall and a stage winner this year, becoming the first person from Botswana to win a stage in the Dakar. He has top-10 speed but a crash on stage 3 set him back.
SSV (Side-by-Side)
  • Conrad Rautenbauch (ZIM) and his Portuguese co-driver are 4th overall.
 
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Dakar Rally 2020: Peterhansel wins stage nine, Sainz's lead slashed
X-raid Mini driver Stephane Peterhansel recorded his third stage win of the 2020 Dakar Rally, as Nasser Al-Attiyah closed in on rally leader Carlos Sainz Sr.

The three frontrunners benefitted from an advantageous position in the running order for the near-296-mile Wadi ad-Dawasir - Haradh stage, following low-key finishes on Monday.

But whereas Peterhansel and Al-Attiyah took full advantage, clocking in first and second at nearly every waypoint, Sainz suffered a costly five-minute loss shortly after the 60-mile mark.

As Al-Attiyah finished just 15 seconds behind stage winner Peterhansel, the Toyota driver has slashed Sainz's lead in the marathon down to less than a half a minute.

The gap between Sainz and team-mate Peterhansel, meanwhile, has been halved and now stands at 6m38s.
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www.autosport.com

Dakar Rally 2020: Peterhansel wins stage nine, Sainz's lead slashed

X-raid Mini driver Stephane Peterhansel recorded his third stage win of the 2020 Dakar Rally, as Nasser Al-Attiyah closed in on rally leader Carlos Sainz Sr
www.autosport.com www.autosport.com
 
Gallery: 2020 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia was a photographic feast
In 2020, the Dakar Rally made another controversial move, this time to the endless desert sands and razor-sharp rocky outcroppings of Saudi Arabia for the ultimate torture test of man and machine. And this year's images are absolutely stunning.

The 42nd edition of this storied race has been run and won, with just under 70 percent of starters making it to the finish line in the first Saudi Dakar. American Ricky Brabec took a long-awaited win in the motorcycle class for Honda, breaking an 18-year winning streak by KTM, and Ignacio Casale hopped back on a quad bike to dominate the field for his third quad title after a year floundering in the side-by-side division, which was won this year by American Casey Currie in a Can-Am on just his second Dakar start.

Spanish veteran Carlos Sainz drove his Mini to his third Dakar trophy in the cars category, and Kamaz again smashed the trucks division, with Andrey Karginov and his team stepping up to walk the rest of the field when last year's champion Eduoard Nikolayev retired with mechanical issues. A pall was cast over the event by the tragic death of motorcycle veteran Paolo Goncalvez, pictured below, who succumbed to injuries after a high speed crash during Stage 7.
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newatlas.com

Gallery: 2020 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia was a photographic feast

In 2020, the Dakar Rally made another controversial move, this time to the endless desert sands and razor-sharp rocky outcroppings of Saudi Arabia for the ultimate torture test of man and machine. And this year's images are absolutely stunning.
newatlas.com newatlas.com
 
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