Dakar 2024 summary, stage 3 (Al Duwadimi – Al Salamiya): results and classification

The Argentine Kevin Benavides, defending Dakar title, has been awarded the third stage of the Dakar 2024, a couple of hours after its conclusion on motorcycles, due to the penalties that the organization has imposed for exceeding the speed limits on the Chilean Pablo Quintanilla, who finished first, and Barreda, who was second.

The Chilean pilot Pablo Quintanilla had led an endless stage of up to 733 kilometers that alternated dunes, dirt and stones and in which the South American pushed himself to stand out from the rest and surpass the Spaniard Joan Barreda, who finished second and who seemed to be aiming for the general of the motorcycles after a penalty this Sunday that had sunk him in the table.

However, two radars caught both Barreda, who had a twelve-minute penalty for speeding at 85 and 98 km/h in two sections in which he had to go at 30 km/h, and Quintanilla, with six minutes of speeding. penalty for passing at 84 km/h in a 30 km/h zone,

The eldest of the Benavides, third, thus moved to first place, although the general classification does not change, which continues for the Botswana Ross Branch, who was also penalized with one minute.

The stage, in addition to the penalties, was marked from the beginning by the withdrawal of the British Sam Sunderland, two-time winner of the Dakar, due to a mechanical problem, and by the very young pilot Mason Klein, who also had a problem with his motorcycle when He was leading with more than a minute advantage after the first kilometers.

The German Sebastian Bühler also had to abandon the race, who suffered a fall at kilometer 360 of the special and had to be evacuated by helicopter to the hospital with lower back pain, although fortunately he got on conscious and mobile.

Thus, Benavides ended up taking advantage of all those inconveniences, from falls to mechanical problems and penalties, to finish with the victory of the third stage of the Dakar 2024.

In fact, Quintanilla, Barreda and Benavides had signed a new podium with a Hispanic signature, although that podium was finally occupied by Kevin Benavides, the American Ricky Bravec and the Frenchman Adrien Van Beveren, who is close to Branch in the general classification, in which the from Botswana has 3 minutes and 11 seconds over the Chilean Nacho Cornejo.

Despite everything, both Quintanilla, Cornejo and the two Benavides brothers remain in the ‘top ten’ and continue in the fight for the general classification. Although Branch continues to be first in that classification, Cornejo follows closely, as do Quintanilla, 16 minutes away, Kevin Benavides, 20 minutes away, and Luciano Benavides, 27 minutes away.

Up to ten riders are within thirty minutes of the leader in the motorcycle category, possibly the most irregular of the entire race, as it has had four different winners since the prologue.

This third stage, which was a ‘semi-marathon’, covered 733 kilometres, 438 of them timed, between the Saudi towns of Ad Duwadimi and Al Samiya, in one of the longest days of the Dakar and the most varied of the rally, as a first stretch of dunes gave way to a patch of stones and another of dirt.

This day, in addition, awaited added toughness at the finish line: the mechanics only had two hours after the arrival of the drivers to repair the vehicles, which were left in parc ferme ahead of this Tuesday’s stage.

This Monday, the Saudi Yazeed Al Rajhi snatched the lead in the Dakar 2024 general car classification from the Spaniard Carlos Sainz by 29 seconds, in a third stage in which the Brazilian Lucas Moraes took the victory by just nine seconds against the Swede Mattias Ekström.

With a time of 4 hours, 14 minutes and 51 seconds, Moraes surpassed Ekström and Al Rajhi, who was third at 1 minute and nine seconds, a time that allowed him to gain two minutes and twenty seconds over Sainz, who arrived at the stage with 1’41″ over the Saudi but who suffered a fracture due to poor initial navigation and a puncture caused by a hole that almost caused him to capsize.

In a stage called a ‘semi-marathon’, since the drivers’ vehicles could only be repaired for two hours after finishing, Sainz finished sixth, two positions behind Nasser Al-Attiyah, the great favorite to retain the Touareg.

However, the current Dakar champion not only finished the stage fourth and continues his climb in the general table – in which he is already fifth, 10 minutes and 49 seconds behind, after a bad first stage – but he did so driving the car to his mechanics with three wheels, while on the fourth, the left rear one, the rim was exposed.

And, as he commented at the end of the stage, he had two tire punctures in the first section of the race, but decided to push in the last hundred kilometers, although in the final thirty kilometers he had a third puncture and chose “to continue” because They didn’t have a spare wheel. “The car arrived with a lot of damage but it is fine, now the mechanics will fix it. I don’t have any problems,” he explained.

Moraes’ victory and Al Rajhi’s leadership show that the Toyotas can match and even surpass the speed of the Audis. And three of the top five finishers in this stage are Toyota brand cars, since Moraes and Al Rajhi are joined by the car of Frenchman Dumas, who finished fifth, beating Sainz, and being just 2’01″ behind. of Moraes.

There were doubts about whether the Brazilian’s emergence last year could be sustained over time. Last year he finished third overall, but the most critical explained that he achieved it because the big favorites, like Sainz or Loeb, fell from the first positions to the first ones, while everything went smoothly for him and he had no chance. no mechanical failure.

However, Moraes, who is already fourth overall, exhibited his power this Monday in a complicated stage that required a lot of skill, since it was, without a doubt, one of the most varied of the Dakar: he had a first stretch of dunes that gave way to a terrain with many stones before ending with dirt.

Another lesson in consistency was shown by the Saudi Al Rajhi, third in the 2022 edition and who last year won a stage despite having to subsequently abandon. Fifth this Sunday, the Saudi driver and businessman maintained his consistency and despite a puncture in the first half of the stage he managed to pull himself together to finish third and, thus, end up taking the lead from the Madrid native.

Sainz explained at the end of the stage that he lost the day at the beginning, since, at first, he had five bad minutes of navigation and then, while he was behind Ekström, he ran into a hole that he did not expect, which caused him a puncture and The vehicle barely overturned.

However, despite leaving the lead, the Spaniard did not lose much time with Al Rajhi and, overall, he has practically eight minutes with the third, his teammate Mattias Ekström, while he also has just over ten minutes on Al -Attiyah, defending champion and great favorite for victory.

He also marked differences with Sébastien Loeb, who finished the stage 23 minutes behind Moraes and who thus lost many of his aspirations to win the Touareg, the only major championship that eluded the Frenchman, nine-time champion of the world rally championship and who finished second last year.

This third stage, the first without clear control by Audi, covered 733 kilometers, 438 of them timed, between the Saudi towns of Ad Duwadimi and Al Samiya, in one of the longest days of the Dakar and the most varied of the rally.

STAGE 3 – DAKAR 2024 WHAT TIME DID IT START?

DEPARTURE TIME – MOTORCYCLES

10:30 p.m. on Friday – Mexico

11:30 p.m. on Friday – Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, United States (Miami)

00:30 hours on Saturday – Venezuela, Bolivia

01:30 hours on Saturday – Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Chile

05:30 Sunday – Spain, Germany, Italy, France

DEPARTURE TIME – CARS

10:39 p.m. on Friday – Mexico

23:39 hours – Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, United States (Miami)

00:39 hours on Saturday – Venezuela, Bolivia

07:39 hours on Saturday – Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Chile

05:39 hours on Saturday – Spain, Germany, Italy, France

WHERE TO SEE DAKAR 2024

Images of the Dakar can be seen on ESPN and Star Plus internationally, while Eurosport, Teledeporte and RTVE Play and TV3 will show the rally in Spain and Fox Sports in Mexico.

DAKAR 2024 LIVE

DAKAR TOUR 2024

This Dakar that begins on Friday leaves the sensation of being the one of changes: from the Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah, current car champion, who leaves Toyota and has signed for Prodrive, to the new names of the categories, which now have proper name and forget T1, T2, T3, T4 and T5.

Thus, T1, the until now highest category of cars – in which, for example, the Spanish Carlos Sainz competes -, will be called Ultimate, T2 will be called Stock, T3 will be Challenger until now, T4 will become SSV and T5 will be Trucks, while Motorcycles and Quads will continue with the same names.

This new adventure through the Saudi Arabian desert, the fifth in a row to be located in the Arabian Peninsula, will feature these five new classes, after the FIA ​​and the Amaury Sport Organization (ASO), organizer of the event, have agreed change their name.

But this is not the only change, since 2024 arrives with a dance of drivers who change teams, categories or who simply return to competition after a year off.

This is the case of the Spaniard Nani Roma, who after several years driving for Prodrive had to be absent in 2023 due to bladder cancer that forced him to stop short and worry about his health. However, the Catalan has now completely recovered from the illness and is back in the hands of Ford, who has trusted him with his project.

The Barcelonan seems to have responded and be in tune. After missing the Dakar for the first time in 27 years, he finished third in both the Baja España Aragón rally and the Morocco rally, two of the great preparation tests for the best-known rally race.

The one who was there last year was the Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah, who won his fifth Dakar, his third with Toyota. However, the current champion changed teams in the summer and moved to Prodrive, along with Frenchman Sebastian Löeb. Al-Attiyah will drive a Hunter T-1 with which he has the challenge of winning his third consecutive Touareg and his fourth Dakar in six years.

Joan Barreda from Castellón has also changed vehicles. A true stage hunter, the Spaniard will change his classic Honda for a Hero motorcycle, the Indian team with which he seeks the title that has always eluded him in the Dakar, despite accumulating more than two dozen stage victories.

The one who will seek his first ‘étage’ in the Dakar is the Valencian Tosha Schareina, who after a creditable thirteenth position last year faces his first year as an HRC factory driver, in the Monster Energy Honda Team. In his first season, he already won the Baja España Aragón rally and finished fifth in the prestigious Morocco Rally, in which he won the second stage.