AL DUWADIMI, Saudi Arabia — Sunday’s Dakar Rally Stage Seven loop across the Al Duwadimi bivouac noticed confusion cloud the entrance of the Final class as a result of an incorrect notice within the highway ebook.
The main group, together with Nasser Al-Attiyah and Guillaume De Mévius, misplaced almost an hour looking in useless for a waypoint with organizers later saying {that a} 20km phase could be delimited from the timings because of the roadblock error – Brazilian Lucas Moraes popping out greatest because of his first stage win in the course of the forty seventh version.
South African Henk Lategan continues to be clinging on to the Final general lead, nevertheless Swede Mattias Ekström is now solely 10 minutes and 25 seconds again in third place general in his Ford Raptor T1+, five-time winner Al-Attiyah additionally inside hanging distance at 21 minutes, 57 seconds off the class chief.
“There was an issue within the roadbook, so we ended up trying like clowns within the circus,” Ekström mentioned. “That bit wasn’t so enjoyable, however afterwards we drove in addition to we might. It was fairly tough.”
Toby Worth and 2009 Dakar champion Giniel de Villiers each retired as co-drivers Sam Sunderland and Dirk von Zitzewitz suffered a concussion and a neck harm respectively.
“We had a difficulty with the automobile that pushed us again into the mud with poor visibility and Sammy took one other blow to the pinnacle, dropping imaginative and prescient,” Worth defined. “It’s a disgrace to complete like this and we’re each gutted.
“We are able to repair automobiles however not people, and Sam is household to me so his well being comes first.”
It was one other faultless efficiency on two wheels by bike race chief Daniel Sanders as he clocked up his fifth 2025 stage win for Pink Bull KTM Manufacturing unit Racing and thereby stretched his lead on the prime of the rankings to fifteen minutes, 33 seconds.
“My velocity was good, my head was good and my focus was good,” Sanders mentioned. “We’re right here to win and we’re doing every thing we are able to to make that occur.”
American Corbin Leaverton got here out sturdy once more within the Challenger class and bagged his second 2025 stage win to maneuver into sixth general with Pink Bull Off-Street Junior Crew team-mate Gonçalo Guerreiro higher positioned to problem for the title, mendacity simply half-hour, 37 seconds off chief Nicolas Cavigliasso.
“We’re giving every thing now we have on each stage,” Guerreiro mentioned. “I’m pleased we might move the massive dunes at the moment.”
Within the SSV class, Francisco “Chaleco” López closed in on Xavier De Soultrait in second general with the Chilean chopping the hole to twenty minutes between him and the Frenchman within the classification standings.
Organizers have described Monday’s Stage 8 between Al Duwadimi and Saudi Arabia’s capital metropolis Riyadh as “hectic and various” with the timed particular stage of greater than 480km having the potential to shake issues up.
