„Dakar“: Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz fifth fastest on the day
Salta, 11th January 2013 Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz remain in third place overall at the Rally Dakar. The 2009 „Dakar“ winners, in the cockpit of a Toyota Hilux „made in South Africa“, ended the seventh stage from Calama to Salta in fifth place. Hot favourites Stéphane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret in the X-raid Mini continue to top the standings, 44m 03s ahead of de Villiers and von Zitzewitz.
The route on day seven took the competitors over the Andes from Calama in Chile to Salta in Argentina. The special stage was dominated by long straights, rocky surfaces and high altitudes. The entire special stage was held at over 3,400 metres above sea level. The seventh leg of the „Dakar“ was overshadowed by a tragic road accident. France’s Thomas Bourgin, who was competing in the motorbike competition, was the victim of a fatal crash on the link route – a public road – on the way to the start of the special stage.
The quotes
„We got through the special stage well today and conceded a surprisingly small amount of time to the diesel cars. They have a physical advantage at that kind of altitude. The second part of the stage was narrow and winding – rather like stages in the World Rally Championship. Before the stage we heard that one of the motorcyclists had been killed in an accident on the link route. That is very upsetting.“
Giniel de Villiers after leg 07
„Today’s stage is very encouraging ahead of the next few stages. We looked good on this kind of ’special‘ and go into the coming WRC-style stages fully motivated. This will give us the opportunity to do well. However, this stage was overshadowed by a fatal accident involving one of the motorcyclists. It is sad and shocking to lose a member of the ‚Dakar‘ family.“
Dirk von Zitzewitz after leg 07
Results: Dakar Rally overall classification after leg 07
- 01. Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (F/F), Mini, 16:23.43 Std.
- 02. Nasser Al-Attiyah/Lucas Cruz (Q/E), Buggy, 16:26.57 Std.
- 03. Giniel de Villiers/Dirk von Zitzewitz (ZA/D), Toyota, 17:07.46 Std.
- 04. Leonid Novitzkiy/Konstantin Zhiltsov (RUS/RUS), Mini, 17:12.37 Std.
- 05. Guerlain Chicherit/Jean-Pierre Garcin (F/F), Buggy, 17:40.48 Std.
Coming up: Preview Stage 08
Salta–Tucumán (connection: 143 km, special stage: 155 km, connection: 133 km, special stage: 183 km, connection: 228 km)
Narrow tracks, countless corners and loads of rocks, in stark contrast to the previously open landscape: the competitors will be faced with a challenging special stage, the start of which resembles a WRC stage, on day eight of the Dakar. „We drivers will have our hands full on these winding routes,“ says Giniel de Villiers. „On top of that, we must reckon with few overtaking opportunities and a lot of dust.“ Dirk von Zitzewitz: „The first of the two parts of the stage should be similar to the route here in 2011. The second section is completely new territory for us. It will probably return to the open landscape and the desert, so the second part promises to be quicker.“
„Dakar“ on TV
Friday, 11 January 2013
23:15 hrs Eurosport 2013 Dakar Rally, leg 07, summary
Saturday, 12 January 2013
01:00 hrs Eurosport 2013 Dakar Rally, leg 07, summary (re-run)
19:15 hrs Eurosport 2 2013 Dakar Rally, leg 08, interviews at the finish line (live)
23:00 hrs Eurosport 2013 Dakar Rally, leg 08, summary
Sunday, 13 January 2013
01:30 hrs Eurosport 2013 Dakar Rally, leg 08, summary (re-run)
23:00 hrs Eurosport 2013 Dakar Rally, rest day, summary