The final two stages of the first week proved to be quite challenging. Just days after the grueling 48-hour Chrono Stage, participants had to tackle the marathon stage, which required them to spend the previous night without their teams. As in the first part of the marathon stage yesterday, sharp-edged rocks and difficult navigation tested the crews’ skills. Guillaume de Mévius and Mathieu Baumel finished the day in 12th place in the MINI JCW Rally 3.0i. Two positions behind them, teammates Guerlain Chicherit and Alex Winocq (MINI JCW Rally 3.0i) crossed the finish line. Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov also secured a spot in the Top 20, finishing 16th in the MINI JCW Rally 3.0i.
Like many other crews, João Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro in the MINI JCW Rally 3.0d struggled with navigation challenges. They also had to stop once due to a flat tire, finishing the day in 29th place. Returnees Vladas Jurkevicius and Aisvydas Paliukenas delivered a strong performance, finishing 38th after starting in 150th place, fighting their way past numerous competitors.
In the overall standings, the Chicherit/Winocq and Ferreira/Palmeiro crews are in 10th and 11th positions, respectively. De Mévius and Baumel currently rank 23rd. The father-daughter duo Lionel and Lucie Baud ended the first week in 31st place overall.
Annett Quandt and Annie Seel finished 89th in the X-raid Fenic. In the overall standings, they are currently in 66th place and have achieved an excellent 14th place in the Challenger category after the first week. Their teammates Maria Gameiro and José Marques, in the second X-raid Fenic, are still on the course.
What’s next:
Tomorrow is the rest day in Hail, giving the crews much-needed recovery time. For the mechanics, however, it’s the opposite. They will almost completely disassemble the vehicles to prepare them as perfectly as possible for the second week of the Dakar.
Quotes from the team
Guillaume de Mévius (#222 MINI JCW Rally 3.0i): “It was a tough first week with various challenges. Yesterday, we had multiple tire punctures, and today we got lost. The first week was really intense, just as David [Castera] had warned us. Things didn’t always go our way, but we’ll come back stronger in the second week. Our goal is to return to the top 10.”
João Ferreira (#240 MINI JCW Rally 3.0d): “Today wasn’t our day. We had a flat tire and also got lost. But that’s Dakar. Now it’s time to rest and recharge so we can start the second week with full energy. We’re currently 11th in the overall standings. It’s not quite what we hoped for, but it’s not bad either.”
Result stage 5
1. S. Quintero / D. Zenz – Toyota – 4h 32m 53s
2. N. Al-Attiyah / E. Boulanger – Dacia – 4h 32m 54s
3. M. Ekström / E. Bergkvist – Ford – 4h 33m 01s
4. H. Lategan / B. Cummings – Toyota – 4h 33m 47s
5. Y. Al-Rajhi / T. Gottschalk – Toyota – 4h 37m 10s
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12. G. de Mévius / M. Baumel – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 4h 51m 24s
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14. G. Chicherit / A. Winocq – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 4h 51m 40s
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17. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 4h 56m 16s
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29. J. Ferreira / F. Palmeiro – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 5h 14m 55s
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38. V. Jurkevicius / A. Paliukenas – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 5h 22m 56s
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63. L. Baud / L. Baud – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 5h 15m 17s
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89. A. Quandt / A. Seel – X-raid Team – 6h 17m 57s
Overall standings
1. H. Lategan / B. Cummings – Toyota – 28h 10m 11s
2. Y. Al-Rajhi / T. Gottschalk – Toyota – 28h 20m 28s
3. M. Ekström / E. Bergkvist – Ford – 28h 31m 05s
4. N. Al-Attiyah / E. Boulanger – Dacia – 28h 45m 11s
5. L. Moraes / A. Monleon – Toyota – 28h 52m 06s
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10. G. Chicherit / A. Winocq – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 29h 48m 56s
11. J. Ferreira / F. Palmeiro – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 30h 02m 26s
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23. G. de Mévius / M. Baumel – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 32h 00m 30s
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30. L. Baud / L. Baud – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 32h 39m 27s
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66. A. Quandt / A. Seel – X-raid Team – 39h 21m 52s
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(79.) D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 75h 40m 28s
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(82.) V. Jurkevicius / A. Paliukenas – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 116h 31m 50s
