The weather is continuing to affect the route of the 2022 Dakar. Today’s third leg around the bivouac in Al Qaisumah had to be shortened by roughly 100 kilometres as a result of yesterday’s rain. The MINI JCW Buggy crew of Jakub “Kuba” Przygonski (POL) / Timo Gottschalk (GER) ended the 255-kilometre stage in 13th place. Just behind them in 14th were Yasir Seaidan (KSA) and Alexey Kuzmich in their MINI JCW.
Vaidotas Zala (LTU) and Paulo Fiuza (POR) finished 20th in the MINI JCW Rally. Sebastian Halpern and Bernardo “Ronnie” Graue (both ARG) came home five places behind them in a MINI JCW Buggy. Laia Sanz (ESP) and Maurizio Gerini (ITA) were 27th in their MINI ALL4 Racing. Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov ended stage three in 35th place.
Przygonski showed great consistency in his MINI JCW Buggy, making it through today’s leg without any major issues. He and his co-driver Gottschalk maintained ninth place in the overall standings.
Kuba Przygonski: “The circuit was very fast today, with a few dunes. Driving was great fun on this stage. We gave it our all and got the maximum out of the car. However, the time was not what we were expecting.”
Saudi driver Seaidan lost a lot of time early on in the stage and dropped back to 29th place. However, he was able to work his way back up the standings in his MINI JCW Rally and crossed the finish line in 14th place. He now lies 12th in the overall standings, just outside the top ten.
Over the past few days, Halpern had always made it through the stages very nicely in the MINI JCW Buggy. Today, however, he encountered problems for the first time: He struggled to find his rhythm after a puncture and had to settle for 25th place.
Sebastian Halpern: “That was not a good day for me. We had a puncture and had to stop. I simply did not have the right feel for the route or the dunes. As a result, we were too slow.”
Sanz had a good day today. She had to start behind the trucks but was able to overtake and attack them better in the open desert. As a result, she finished 27th and now lies 28th overall.
Laia Sanz: “I think we did pretty well today. It was fun and we found a good rhythm. I really hope that we can start ahead of the trucks tomorrow. That would be very important.”
Tomorrow’s stage takes the drivers into the capital Riyadh. At 465 kilometres, the longest stage of the 2022 Dakar awaits them. The stage features a 200-kilometre fast section, as well as dunes, rocks, and wadis.
Dakar Rally – Result SS3
1. C. Sainz / L. Cruz – Audi – 2h 26m 51s
2. H. Lategan / B. Cummings – Toyota – 2h 27m 29s
3. S. Peterhansel / E. Boulanger – Audi – 2h 28m 32s
4. N. Roma / A. Haro – BRX – 2h 29m 32s
5. M. Ekström / E. Bergkvist – Audi – 2h 29m 50s
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13. J. Przygonski / T. Gottschalk – MINI JCW Buggy – 2h 39m 27s
14. Y. Seaidan / A. Kuzmich – MINI JCW Rally – 2h 40m 46s
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21. V. Zala / P. Fiuza – MINI JCW Rally – 2h 44m 03s
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25. S. Halpern / B. Graue – MINI JCW Buggy – 2h 46m 16s
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27. L. Sanz / M. Gerini – MINI ALL4 Racing – 2h 47m 30s
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35. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Buggy – 2h 56m 27s
Overall standings after SS3
1. N. Al-Attiyah / M. Baumel – Toyota – 6h 59m 21
2. S. Loeb / F. Lurquin – BRX – 07h 08m 37s
3. L. Alvarez / A. Monleon – Toyota – 7h 40m 14s
4. G. de Villiers / D. Murphy – Toyota – 7h 40m 43s
5. Y. Al-Rajhi / M. Orr – Toyota
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8. S. Halpern / B. Graue – MINI JCW Buggy – 7h 46m 38s
9. J. Przygonski / T. Gottschalk – MINI JCW Buggy – 7h 58m 42s
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12. Y. Seaidan / A. Kuzmich – MINI JCW Rally – 8h 17m 20s
13. V. Zala / P. Fiuza – MINI JCW Rally – 8h 19m 31s
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16. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Buggy – 8h 21m 19s
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28. L. Sanz / M. Gerini – MINI ALL4 Racing – 9h 04m 21
