TOYOTA GAZOO Racing W2RC (TGR W2RC) survived a punishing Stage 3 over demanding terrain in Saudi Arabia as the Dakar Rally lived up to its reputation as one of the toughest challenges in motorsports.
After their dominant performance on Monday’s Stage 2, the three DKR GR Hilux were the first to leave the bivouac for the longest stage so far. They therefore faced a more treacherous surface and additional navigation challenges as the first vehicles to pass through the route.
Stage 3 was run almost entirely above 1,000 metres altitude and took competitors east through the canyons of the AlUla region on their way to plateaus. A fast route, which covered over four hours of driving time, followed through winding canyons before returning westward to AlUla.
Punctures were an ever-present threat on the rocky surface, and all three crews suffered as a result. The time lost dropped the three DKR GR Hilux out of the overall top 10, but 10 stages and over 3,600 km of competitive action remain for the crews to return to the front.
Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings led the TGR W2RC contingent in their #202 DKR GR Hilux. They stayed within a minute of the leaders on the first 100 km, but two punctures in quick succession forced them to ease off and they finished Stage 3 in 23rd. They are 11th overall, almost 15 mins behind the leaders but still within touching distance of the top 10.
Seth Quintero and Andrew Short started the day seven seconds off the overall lead but a series of punctures badly compromised their stage. The third left them unable to continue until Toby Price and Armand Monleón donated their last spare, displaying true team spirit. Despite proceeding with caution, yet another puncture left Quintero and Short limping to the finish line. They lost over an hour on their way to 57th in the Ultimate class, 27th overall.
For the remainder of the stage, Price and Monleón also had to take extreme care to avoid further punctures, with no spare tyre remaining. They finished in 32nd in their #204 DKR GR Hilux and are 16th overall, 25 mins off the lead.
Stage 3 victory went to Ford Racing and Mitch Guthrie and Kellon Walch, who now lead overall. Martin Prokop and Viktor Chytka were second in another Ford, entered by Orlen Jipocar Team, while Guy Botterill and Oriol Mena completed the podium for TGR South Africa.
Wednesday sees the start of a two-day marathon stage which takes crews further eastward to Hail on back-to-back stages totalling 838 km of competitive driving. To add to the challenge, competitors are permitted no outside assistance until the end of Stage 5 on Thursday, meaning they sleep in tents alongside their vehicles.
Henk Lategan: “There were a lot of rocks on the stage today and it felt like there was always a risk of a puncture. We were going quite well at the beginning until we got two punctures within a few kilometres. Then it was game over in terms of pushing. With no spares, if we had another puncture, it could be the end of our rally. So, we just tiptoed across the rocks – and there were so many of them today. We did 300 km with no spare tyre, so it was a difficult day.”
Seth Quintero: “We made a good start, despite opening the stage, and were doing well. We got our first puncture early on and the second came soon after. We got a third when we were driving in a straight line going about 20 km/h. Toby gave us a wheel so thanks to him we could keep going. We were driving very slowly, and I pulled over for another car to pass. I didn’t even get back on the line and we got another puncture. It’s really disappointing but now we will try to fight for a top 10.”
Toby Price: “It was a crazy day again. We knew the conditions would be tough and they were. We got one flat at about 120 km then I saw Seth had a puncture – his second – and he was without tyres. I gave him my other spare, so we ran all afternoon without any spare tyres. That was not ideal and we lost a lot of time. The standings don’t look great right now, but it’s only day three. We got through it, which is the most important thing.”
Source: Toyota Gazoo Racing
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