The MINI All4 Racing team are contesting the Dakar and they're doing very well so far. The first stage ran Sunday, 1 Jan. The 5 MINIs finished the stage 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 10th and 13th in the car category! They finished Stage 2, yesterday, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 8th and 9th. Stage 3 results (today): 1st, 2nd, 7th, 9th ...... and 120th (2hr 40min back) ...... don't know what happened there. Overall standings/ranking (just the top 10) after Stage 3: Column 1 Column 2 Column 3 Column 4 Column 5 Column 6 Rank Driver/Co-Driver Manufacturer Time Gap to 1st 01 #304 Holowczyc/Fortin MINI 05:51:06 02 #303 Gordon/Campbell Hummer 05:52:00 00:00:54 03 #301 De Villiers/von Zitzewitz Toyota 05:52:46 00:01:40 04 #305 Roma/Périn MINI 05:52:56 00:01:50 05 #302 Peterhansel/Cottret MINI 05:53:47 00:02:41 06 #300 Al-Attiyah/Cruz Hummer 05:57:40 00:06:34 07 #312 Novitskiy/Schulz MINI 06:05:59 00:14:53 08 #319 Alvarez/Graue Toyota 06:11:45 00:20:39 09 #307 Sousa/Garcin Great Wall 06:12:52 00:21:46 10 #317 Wevers/Lurquin Mitsubishi 06:17:12 00:26:06
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9S6FG4PqMzk]Dakar Day 1 -- Three MINI ALL4 Racing On Top. - YouTube[/ame]
Nice Steve. BMW/MINI are not involved with these cars, so we should get a good season with them. BTW: What do the mud-flap-like things on the rear wheels do? They look like the flap around too much to do any good, but i could be rong. Jim
Been thinking the same. I saw similar flaps on the WRC cars from time to time last year as well. Big, soft, flappy things aren't they? ... and ugly. Best guess (and it's a real WAG) is they're up, out of the way and creating less drag when the car is at speed and they're down where they can have an effect when slogging through mud, etc.
Good guess. They all seem to have them, so perhaps mud flaps are required and they came up with these things, just to meet the rule. Jim
I am sure they are still more than enough to keep rocks from flipping too high into the air and taking out spectators and/or other car radiators/lights/windscreens/etc when passing is involved.
Yes to get them through scrutineering. If those flaps were rigid they would get ripped off & take the part of the body they were bolted to along with them. Does anyone else think that first picture looks like a publicity shot for team Skittles? :biggrin5:
Stage 4 results for the MINI All4 Racing team: 1st, 4th, 5th, 10th and 11th. As a reference, 136 cars were classified as finishers yesterday on Stage 3. Not all cars have completed Stage 4 yet so the overall standings aren't available but I think those stage finishes will stand. More later.
Not bad at all. Thanks Steve. So, we can start following the MINI dune buggies instead of WRC. Works for me. Jim
Is WCR the World Circuit Rally? I like WRC better too, but I am very disappointed with BMW/MINI and think this season could make them look like a joke. I guess I'll follow VW now and see if they are serious. Somebody need to take on the big guys. Jim
Overall ranking (top 10 only) after Stage 4: Column 1 Column 2 Column 3 Column 4 Column 5 Column 6 Rank Driver/Co-Driver Manufacturer Time Gap to 1st 01 #302 Peterhansel/Cottret MINI 09:43:20 02 #301 De Villiers/von Zitzewitz Toyota 09:49:01 00:05:41 03 #305 Roma/Périn MINI 09:50:04 00:06:44 04 #304 Holowczyc/Fortin MINI 09:51:30 00:08:10 05 #303 Gordon/Campbell Hummer 09:59:43 00:16:23 06 #312 Novitskiy/Schulz MINI 10:09:45 00:26:25 07 #300 Al-Attiyah/Cruz Hummer 10:14:04 00:30:44 08 #307 Sousa/Garcin Great Wall 10:14:05 00:30:45 09 #319 Alvarez/Graue Toyota 10:16:31 00:33:11 10 #317 Wevers/Lurquin Mitsubishi 10:20:02 00:36:42
One of the best things about the Dakar are its ethics, that grew out of the need to look out for other competitors first, and race second. I only found out this year that, at the competitors' briefing before the start, the youngest competitor is required to deliver a 'sermon' to all other competitors on the right way to behave! Reportedly this year's youngster, 20-year old Loca Bonetto, acquitted himself well: But yesterday was a superb example, shown on Yurpeen TV coverage - last year's car winner Nasser Al-Attiyah was seen in the bivouac helping one of the privateer motorbike competitors fix his bike. Not something you see in other races.
Here's hoping that spirit continues. I find that sort of friendly camaraderie easier to imagine when the original Paris-Dakar was new to everyone. These days "Dakar" isn't just the one big rally (now in SA), it's a series of rallies in different countries. For those who participate in the series that means bigger budgets and as we've seen in other motorsport series' that often leads to corporate-style pressure and cutthroat battles for results (and air time, such as it is). Don't mean to dampen enthusiasm, just saying... Stepping back down from my cynic/pessimist soapbox...well done Al-Attiyah.
It was on the NBC Sports Summary as well.... Seems Nasser Al-Attiyah started riding quads (I think that's what he said) and was helped by one (several?) other entrants when he ran out of gas. They shared some of their gas with him so he could finish. Obviously increasing the risk that they would later run short. Nasser related that ever since that incident he tries to help make sure that all motorcycles make it off at the start of each stage. I'm not sure when the quads go off, but motorcycles leave before the cars. Yes, I agree that is awesome! And I'm sure Earl would agree as well.