The special of Stage 10 is 371 km long, with obstacles along the way that will hinder the competitors’ race after the tiniest of mistakes. This could mean fortune for some, and complete disaster for others. Patience and riding/driving skills will be the key today.
Bikes
Ross Branch didn’t lose time and set the pace immediately, followed by Martin Michek by just 4 seconds. Adrien Van Beveren was opening the stage and losing time, but thanks to the bonuses he was limiting the damage.
Ricky Brabec then seemed in a world of his own as he extended his lead to Ross Branch and Van Beveren by 8′ 48″ and 11′ 50″. Meanwhile, Brabec was extending his lead in the general standings, too. Branch was second, with Van Beveren closing in quickly thanks to his great performance today.
In the end, Brabec just managed to win Stage 10. Nacho Cornejo was only 2 seconds behind, and Van Beveren completed the podium with a gap of 20 seconds to the leader. Brabec leads the standings with a gap of 10′ 54″ over Branch, and he also is 11′ 46″ clear of Van Beveren.
Quads
Once again, it was a fierce battle between Alexandre Giroud and Manuel Andujar, with the latter leading the Frenchman by 2′ 39″ at km 91. Juraj Varga was third, 4′ 12″ behind.
At km 264, Andujar was still leading, over 3 minutes clear of Giroud. Varga was around 10 minutes behind.
Ultimately, Andujar managed to take victory ahead of Giroud by 2′ 38″. Varga remained third, 16′ 17″ behind. The gap between Andujar and Giroud remains close in the general standings, only 8′ 51″ separating them.
Cars
The news of the day was that Nasser Al Attiyah wouldn’t continue the race after suffering yet another mechanical problem yesterday.
Sebastien Loeb immediately encountered issues at the start of the stage, but he didn’t lose much time. However, at km 91, he was around 2 minutes behind Sainz.
The situation completely flipped after 138 km. Sainz had to stop, while Loeb gained 4 minutes over his Spaniard rival. At the 225 km mark, Loeb gained another minute. Meanwhile, Chicherit was the leader of Stage 10, ahead of Dumas and Brian Baragwanath.
In the end, Chicherit was the winner of Stage 10, with Baragwanath taking P2 and Vanagas third. The gaps were 5′ 43″ and 6′ 04″ respectively. In the general standings, Sainz is still the leader, 13′ 22″ ahead of Loeb and more than an hour in front of Lucas Moraes.