Most liked posts in thread: Rally Dakar 2012

Steve · Jan 10, 2012

Part of that is having a title sponsor. That's one of the things Prodrive has been talking about. Apparently the expectation all along was that they'd find the cash to fill the budget gap to enable them to run the full 2012 season (and on) by signing a title sponsor, but they haven't yet found a cash-rich source willing to provide the right sort of money.

Steve · Jan 10, 2012

Gordon is on a charge in the Stage 9-winning Hummer but it looks like Al-Atiyah may have dropped out of the rally.

Stage 9 results:
1 - Hummer
2 - MINI
3 - MINI
4 - MINI
5 - MINI
6 - Toyota
7 - Great Wall
8 - Toyota
9 - MINI
10 - Mitsubishi

minimark · Jan 10, 2012

Never count Robbie out when he's off the tarmac....

Steve · Jan 10, 2012

Gordon is catching up but it looks like Al-Attiyah might be out.

Top 10 after Stage 9:

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 024:41:14

02 #303 Gordon/Campbell Hummer 024:47:12 00:05:58

03 #304 Holowczyc/Fortin MINI 024:58:03 00:16:49

04 #305 Roma/PÃ©rin MINI 025:00:40 00:19:26

05 #301 De Villiers/von Zitzewitz Toyota 025:35:24 00:54:10

06 #312 Novitskiy/Schulz MINI 026:10:34 01:29:20

07 #307 Sousa/Garcin Great Wall 026:25:41 01:44:27

08 #319 Alvarez/Graue Toyota 027:12:49 02:31:35

09 #313 Vos/Howie Toyota 027:25:55 02:44:41

10 #315 Van Loon/Scholtablers Mitsubishi 027:40:26 02:59:12

12 #309 Leal dos Santos/Fuiza MINI 028:38:54 03:57:40

Steve · Jan 10, 2012

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-WQug-S5CE]Monster Energy / X-Raid Team 2012 Dakar Rally - Stage 7 - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Jan 10, 2012

Things are getting close up front with Peterhansel now just under 6 minutes ahead of 2nd place Gordon. Here's MINI Motorsport's spin.

Peterhansel keeps Gordon in check. (minimotorsport.com)

Things are now really hotting up in the Dakar Rally: in the ninth stage, StÃ©phane Peterhansel successfully held off an attack from rival Robby Gordon as they battle it out for the overall victory.

StÃ©phane Peterhansel had a lead of 7:36 minutes over Robby Gordon in second place in the overall classification ahead of the longest stage of this yearâ€™s Dakar Rally. By the end of the day, his lead had shrunk to just 5:58 minutes. There is no doubt about it â€“ the Dakar is really beginning to hot up and the race is now very much on to secure the overall rally victory.

Robby Gordon had made good nearly three minutes on StÃ©phane at the fourth time check of this challenging stage, but the nine-time Dakar winner stepped things up a gear and had managed to reduced Gordonâ€™s gains to a meagre 19 seconds by the penultimate time check on their way to the finishing line near Iquique. Gordon nevertheless ultimately moved 1:38 minutes closer to StÃ©phane in the overall classification, but StÃ©phane holds on to his overall lead in the car category.

StÃ©phane now has another five days and 1,404 timed kilometres during which he must hold off all of his competitors in order to win the tenth Dakar of his career and once again underscore his extraordinary position as a record winner of the worldâ€™s toughest rally. But there are some tough challenges to overcome beforehand â€“ above all the final three days, which take the Dakar into completely new territory in Peru.

StÃ©phaneâ€™s team colleagues Nani Roma, Krzystof Holowczyc and Ricardo Leal dos Santos finished the day in fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively. Leonid Novitskiy crossed the finishing line in ninth place. This was another great result for the X-raid team, which has four of its five MINI ALL4 Racing vehicles in the top ten. In addition, Ricardo moved up from 15th to twelfth place overall.

After some tricky stretches through numerous canyons at the start of the stage and a few faster stretches in the middle, the ninth stage finished with an already infamous spectacular finish. The spectators were treated to breathtaking scenes as the drivers negotiated the huge dune shortly before the finishing line, hurtling down the back of the dune at speeds of up to 180 kilometres per hour on a gradient of nearly 40 degrees. The incredible rush of adrenalin that this perilous manoeuvre must have given the drivers was written on most of their faces at the finishing line.

In the tenth stage on Wednesday, the focus will initially be on pure driving skills again, rather than on maximum speed, as the drivers are once again put through their paces on vast dune fields. The 694-kilometre-long stage heading towards Arica comprises 377 kilometres of special stage. The drivers will also encounter some stretches of scree where stones hidden in the dust could soon stop them in their tracks.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jan 11, 2012

105 cars started today's stage (#10), that's down from 161 at the start of the rally.

One of the MINIs -- #304, Holowczyc/Fortin, classified 3rd overall at the start of the stage -- had some sort of issue early in the stage and lost about an hour on the leader by the second waypoint.

Steve · Jan 11, 2012

Stage 8 video from MINI Motorsport:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSyNwhrAmDs]Dakar Stage 8 -- Roma Top Dog in Chile's Rocky Desert. - YouTube[/ame]

Justa Jim · Jan 11, 2012

Jim

Steve · Jan 11, 2012

Stage 10 result is still unclear at the back where Holowczyc is still struggling to get to the line. He's been stopped at least twice and has lost hours (I think) on the leaders. The top ten finishers are clear though.

1 - MINI
2 - MINI
3 - Toyota
4 - Hummer
5 - Mitsubishi
6 - MINI
7 - MINI
8 - Great Wall
9 - BMW
10 - Toyota

Steve · Jan 11, 2012

Roma wins stage, Peterhansel pulls clear. (minimotorsport.com)

11 January, 2012
The decisive point came in the sand: while StÃ©phane Peterhansel had no trouble with the soft ground, his Dakar rival Robby Gordon came to a stop. Meanwhile, Nani Roma took victory in the day's special stage.

The X-raid team already knew how good the MINI ALL4 Racing was on sand, even before the Rally Dakar got underway. The car's strength, coupled with the driving prowess shown by StÃ©phane Peterhansel in the vast dune fields in the middle section of Wednesday's tenth stage, gave the nine-time Dakar winner some breathing space in the battle at the top of the overall rankings. By way of contrast, the passage through the dunes was a real struggle for Robby Gordon in his Hummer.

Gordon had cut StÃ©phane's lead to just 1:17 minutes by the time they headed into the dunes after about 200 kilometres of the stage. StÃ©phane had already made up another 33 seconds by the next time check, and had extended his lead by a further 2:01 minutes about 60 kilometres later. However, things were to get even worse for Gordon, who was forced to stop for over eleven minutes. StÃ©phane was off and away.

Only team-mate Nani Roma set a faster time than StÃ©phane, securing his third stage victory at the 2012 Dakar and completing a one-two for the X-raid team. Nani also moved ahead of Gordon into second place overall, 19:05 minutes behind StÃ©phane. Gordon dropped back to third place and is now 19:51 minutes behind StÃ©phane.

Unlike Nani and StÃ©phane, Krzysztof Holowczyc and Leonid Novitskiy had a mixed day eleven. After about 50 kilometres Krzysztof was forced to stop for about an hour to fix a problem with his steering. He was then able to continue, but had to stop again after 232 kilometres. As such, any thoughts of second place have gone down the drain for now. Leonid also had problems at about the same point on the stage. The Russian lost time when he strayed from the correct route. Ricardo Leal dos Santos in the fifth MINI finished with the sixth fastest time of the day.

On Thursday the Dakar caravan crosses the border to Peru, which is hosting the Rally Dakar for the first time. Much of the 598-kilometre route to Arequipa is on scree and 478 kilometres are against the clock. The many off-road sections and the zig-zag profile of the stage mean that no record speeds are to be expected.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jan 12, 2012

The X-Raid MINIs did well today, note the podium sweep. Top 10 on Stage 11:

1 - MINI
2 - MINI
3 - MINI
4 - Toyota
5 - MINI
6 - MINI
7 - Mitsubishi
8 - BMW
9 - Toyota
10 - Toyota

Redbeard · Jan 12, 2012

Apparently there is some controversy regarding Robby Gordon and Peterhansel...

Are the French discriminating against Robby Gordon? (Jalopnik)

Steve · Jan 12, 2012

Peterhansel's lead grows. (minimotorsport.com)

12 January, 2012
At first it looked like being a good day for StÃ©phane Peterhansel's fiercest rivals. But then came the toughest section of stage eleven, and there was no stopping StÃ©phane.

It is still too soon to talk about a winner-elect. It can all change in a flash at any time over the remaining three stages. That is one thing that the teams and experts agree on. Despite all that, StÃ©phane Peterhansel still ended the twelfth day of the 2012 Dakar with a broad smile on his face. StÃ©phane now has a lead of 2:10:31 hours over his rival for the overall victory, Robby Gordon, giving him a very comfortable cushion.

It did not look like turning out that way at the start of the day, as Gordon was able to eat into at least some of the leader's 19:51-minute advantage at the top of the overall rankings. The American set the fastest time on each of the first three sections of the eleventh stage, clawing back 2:52 minutes. But, just as it did yesterday, it all went wrong for Gordon. Massive mechanical problems meant Gordon was forced to stop in his Hummer for a good hour and a half while the rest of the field pulled past him and StÃ©phane pulled further and further ahead.

As such, StÃ©phane continues to top the overall rankings, 22:49 minutes ahead of his team-mate Nani Roma, who matched him practically step for step on Thursday's stage. Nani finished with the second fastest time of the day. The X-raid team's remaining three MINI ALL4 Racings also enjoyed an outstanding day. Ricardo Leal dos Santos finished third today to complete a hat-trick for MINI. Leonid Novitskiy was fifth and Krzysztof Holowczyc came home in sixth place. In the overall rankings, Leonid, Ricardo and Krzysztof now lie in fourth, eighth and tenth respectively.

On Friday, the teams will once again face some real challenges on the 657-kilometre route to Nazca. After a long connection to the start of the time sector, the first dunes are just 15 kilometres away. The route then primarily continues on sand before climbing to an altitude of 1700 metres. This is another section for the dune specialists. From 190 kilometres into the special stage, the route takes the competitors from one sandy hill to the next for a good 30 kilometres. Once again, driving prowess and very good orientation are the order of the day.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jan 12, 2012

:lol: :lol:

Steve · Jan 12, 2012

Top 10 after Stage 11:

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 032:38:05

02 #305 Roma/PÃ©rin MINI 033:00:54 00:22:49

03 #301 De Villiers/von Zitzewitz Toyota 033:49:06 01:11:01

04 #303 Gordon/Campbell Hummer 034:48:36 02:10:31

05 #312 Novitskiy/Schulz MINI 034:49:15 02:11:10

06 #319 Alvarez/Graue Toyota 036:31:56 03:53:51

07 #307 Sousa/Garcin Great Wall 036:42:48 04:04:43

08 #314 Ten Brinke/Baumel Mitsubishi 036:55:41 04:17:36

09 #309 Leal dos Santos/Fuiza MINI 037:16:16 04:38:11

10 #313 Vos/Howie Toyota 037:28:26 04:50:21

#304, Holowczyc/Fortin is 11th after yesterday's big problems and huge time loss (038:35:17 @ 05hr, 57min, 12sec behind Peterhansel).

Justa Jim · Jan 12, 2012

Jim

Steve · Jan 13, 2012

Steve · Jan 13, 2012

Stage 9 video:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DABEAZ9UtT0]Dakar Stage 9 -- Peterhansel Keeps Gordon in Check. - YouTube[/ame]

Justa Jim · Jan 13, 2012

Steve, are there any night stages in this rally?

Jim

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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	024:41:14
02	#303	Gordon/Campbell	Hummer	024:47:12	00:05:58
03	#304	Holowczyc/Fortin	MINI	024:58:03	00:16:49
04	#305	Roma/PÃ©rin	MINI	025:00:40	00:19:26
05	#301	De Villiers/von Zitzewitz	Toyota	025:35:24	00:54:10
06	#312	Novitskiy/Schulz	MINI	026:10:34	01:29:20
07	#307	Sousa/Garcin	Great Wall	026:25:41	01:44:27
08	#319	Alvarez/Graue	Toyota	027:12:49	02:31:35
09	#313	Vos/Howie	Toyota	027:25:55	02:44:41
10	#315	Van Loon/Scholtablers	Mitsubishi	027:40:26	02:59:12

12	#309	Leal dos Santos/Fuiza	MINI	028:38:54	03:57:40

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