Stéphane Peterhansel retains its crown writing a new chapter in the history of the Dakar. Sebastien Loeb and Cyril Despres accompany him on the podium, giving the triplet at the French brand. Nani Roma finished fourth with the first Toyota
Stéphane Peterhansel will provide with champagne for 13th time at the end of the two weeks of fierce struggle with Sebastien Loeb, who added his 5th victory of special today. A special stage of just 64 kilometers (with a link of 700km) which led the participants to the podium in Buenos Aires.
The French commented on reaching the podium: “It was still up in the air before the start of the race. The internal competition was fierce and there were, in all, seven or eight drivers with a shot at victory. Halfway through the race there were only four left, and by the final week it was just Sébastien and me. It was a high-stakes duel, we went fast. I’d like to thank Peugeot for providing us with awesome cars and, especially, for not issuing team orders, which is a great show of fair play because it puts us all on an even footing. We were fighting against a super-fast champion who knows how to race from the lead and isn’t easily impressed. Yesterday, it was decided by a flat tyre, and that was probably the turning point in this Dakar. My strategy was to push Sébastien to his limits. This made him more likely to make mistakes, which he eventually did, so it’s not a matter of luck.”
“Messier Dakar” achieves its seventh Dakar In the car category, in addition to the six that achievement in motorcycles. Just a year after winning his first Dakar with Peugeot has returned to repeat. This time has had a tough opponent in front of him, his team-mate Sebastien Loeb. The nine-time champion of the WRC has been very close to Peterhansel and, were it not for the prick suffered at the stage of yesterday, and very probably would have lived an intense day today, but the more than five minutes of difference in favor of peterhansel have been sunk.
On the other way, Cyril Despres, who has completed a magnificent Dakar getting his first win and third on the overall.
Triplet for Peugeot, something almost unthinkable at the beginning of the rally with the modifications that had received the Toyota. But the Dakar does not forgive and except Nani Roma, foruth in the overall, Toyota have not been able to with the toughness of the stages. A Rally very marked by heavy rains that we have been forbidden to see one of the most anticipated stages and where we would have seen the true ability of drivers and co-drivers in the pure navigation.
Today its a day of celebration for Peugeot but with focus into the 2018.