Al-Attiyah claims fifth career win, Loeb second in Dakar Rally
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Reading Time: 2min | Mon. 16.01.23. | 08:51
Kevin Benavides, the 2021 champion, edged out Australian Toby Price by 43 seconds with Skyler Howes of the United States finishing third in the motorbike title.
Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Nasser Al-Attiyah became a five-time winner of the Dakar Rally with an emphatic triumph in Saudi Arabia, cementing his claim as one of the greatest cross-country drivers of all-time.
Sébastien Loeb won the most stages (seven) and established a new Dakar record of six consecutive scratch times en route to second overall, 1h20m49s behind Al-Attiyah.
Gran gesto de Nasser Al-Attiyah poniéndole una “bisht” o capa negra a Kevin Benavides. #Dakar2023 🇦🇷 @kmbenavides pic.twitter.com/IY2FTBj72l
— Gabriela Huergo (@GabiHuergo) January 15, 2023
In another characteristic display from the Qatari driver, Al-Attiyah switched to a conservative approach once all his rivals had fallen by the wayside, playing the long-game instead of going all-out for individual stage honours.
Finishing a safe eighth on the final 136km test between Al-Hofuf and Dammam on Sunday, the Toyota star took the overall honours by 1hr20m49s in what was one of the most one-sided contests in the recent history of the Dakar Rally.
The result puts him second on the list of drivers with most Dakar wins in the cars category, just three more victories behind record holder Stephane Peterhansel.
Completing the podium in third was Dakar debutant Lucas Moraes in an Overdrive Racing-run Toyota Hilux.
The fourth edition of the Dakar Rally to take place in Saudi Arabia was the longest and most challenging event in many years. Covering over 5000km, with 14 stages across 15 days, the 45th running of the Dakar was something of a love letter to classic rally raid.
More dunes and harder navigation were on the agenda for 2023 and proved a challenge for all crews.
P1 etapa - P1 General! CAMPEÓN DAKAR RALLY 2023 🇦🇷❤️!
— Kevin Benavides (@kmbenavides) January 15, 2023
Inmensamente feliz, hoy 15 de enero de 2023, hice historia nuevamente ganando por segunda vez y siendo el Primer Piloto en la historia del Dakar en ganar con dos marcas diferentes en motos! pic.twitter.com/sILtHWrAhx
Final Result after 14 stages
1 Nasser Al-Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel (Toyota Gazoo Racing) 45h03m15s
2 Sébastien Loeb/Fabian Lurquin (Bahrain Raid Xtreme) +1h20m49s
3 Lucas Moraes/Timo Gottschalk (Overdrive Racing) +1h38m31s
4 Giniel de Villiers/Dennis Murphy (Toyota Gazoo Racing) +2h29m12s
5 Henk Lategan/Brett Cummings (Toyota Gazoo Racing) +2h36m23s
6 Martin Prokop/Viktor Chytka (Orlen Benzina Team) +3h40m44s
7 Juan Cruz Yacopini/Dani Oliveras Carreras (Overdrive Racing) +4h27m09s
8 Wei Han/Ma Li (Hanwei Motorsport Team) +4h29m21s
9 Sebastian Halpern/Bernardo Grau (X-raid Mini JCW) +4h42m38s
10 Guerlain Chicherit/Alex Winocq (GCK Motorsport) +5h22m10s
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