A 440-kilometer-long special stage put the competitors of the Dakar to the ultimate test, with an “eclectic mix of stony sections, vast expanses of sand and chains of dunes,” as they themselves put it.
The terrain along the special contains fast and slow sections, together with jagged terrains that only increase the difficulty experienced by those who undertake the challenge in the Saudi Arabian desert.
But the obstacles faced in the driving may be the least of concerns today though, as mechanics only get two hours to work at the finish of the special before their machineries enter the marathon bivouac.
Bikes
Nacho Cornejo had the task of opening Stage 3 after yesterday’s win. Meanwhile, just after 11 km, Sam Sunderland encountered the first issues of the day due to a technical problem.
Despite the problems he had yesterday, Mason Klein started Stage 3 with the right foot. He led the way both at the first and second checkpoints. Then, after 135 km, Pablo Quintanilla overtook Klein to take the provisional lead of the stage.
Meanwhile, there was even worse news for Sunderland. The British driver could not repair the damage, and could not continue the stage. Klein also seemed to have issues with his bike as he proceeded slowly after 270 km. The latter stopped at km 303 to repair the damages.
Another contestant left the Dakar during Stage 3. Sebastian Bühler crashed at km 360, and he could not continue due to lower back pain. Toby Price and Skyler Howes stopped to help him.
In the end, Quintanilla seemed to have brought home the win of Stage 3 ahead of Barreda and Benavides by 1′ 38″ and 1′ 46″. However, he, Barreda, Brabec, and Branch were penalized for speeding on the special.
Therefore, Benavides became the new Stage 3 winner ahead of Brabec and Adrien Van Beveren. In the general standings, Branch is still the leader with a gap of 3′ 11″ to Cornejo, and one of 5′ 08″ to Brabec.
Quads
After 26 km, Alexandre Giroud overtook Marcelo Medeiros for the lead. The latter dropped back to third place behind Manuel Andujar, too.
At km 201, Stage 1 and 2 winner Medeiros was struggling a bit. He was trailing Giroud by 15′ 07″. Meanwhile, Andujar was just 12 seconds behind the leader.
After dominating the whole day, Giroud clinched another stage victory in his career. He was 18 seconds ahead of Andujar, who is now second in the general standings, 1′ 21″ behind Juraj Varga. Medeiros, who had a tough day, now sits in third, 14′ 52″ behind the leader.
Cars
Stage 3 started off with a competitive battle at the front. After 26 km, the top 10 cars were within a one-minute window.
After leading at the 96 km mark, Guillaume de Mevius increased his lead after 135 km. Romain Dumas was second, and Yazeed Al Rajhi third ( 43 seconds and 1′ 21″ behind).
At the 249 km mark, Dumas took the lead of the stage by 1′ 23″ over de Mevius. Lucas Moraes was third, while Sainz, Loeb, and Peterhansel were trailing not too far behind.
Ultimately, Lucas Moraes won Stage 3 ahead of Mattias Ekström by only 9 seconds. Al Rajhi completed the podium, and with today’s result, he gained the lead in the general standings, 29 seconds clear of Sainz.