The Czechs continue to rule Dakar. Macík won the stage, third Loprais returns to the lead

In the trucks this time it was a sharp tug-of-war. The Dutchman Huzink was in the lead at the halfway point, but at the 282nd kilometer, Martin Macík got ahead of him and finally claimed his fourth Dakar triumph this year. Aleš Loprais arrived with a loss of nine minutes and is again in the lead, because after Tuesday the first Jaroslav Valtr was this time behind by 40 minutes. He now ranks third overall. Loprais is 27 minutes ahead of Martin van den Brink.

“Right at the beginning I jumped and broke both front springs. It was rough from start to finish, all sand up and down and then only a few fast sections to the finish,” said Macík, who is reducing Monday’s deficit day by day. He is now 39 minutes short of Lopraise and is fourth.

Loprais started from the back positions, which is why he had to pass a number of trucks and buggies on the track. At the finish line, he said: “It was a nourishing stage, but it bore fruit. We’re glad it’s progressing the way it is.”

Among the bikers, the Spaniard Barreda Bort won, while the Australian Sanders took the lead. Martin Michek rode consistently, he was 14th. As Rodrigues, Branch, Bühler, who were ahead of him in the overall order, had difficulties, he also moved up to 14th in the classification.

“Fourteenth place is the bomb! There were fewer stones, which is great. But they let us into the sand with camel grass, which doesn’t budge, so we practiced a lot with the motorbike. It was a pump, I’m pumped to the max,” described Michek, who in the middle of the stage he was helping two riders get to the gas station. “I pushed Franc Caima behind the rope. Then I also met Štefan Svitek, so I brought him a fuel canister. Fortunately, it was done without any extra minutes for everyone. I’m glad I could help,” added the Czech motorcyclist.

His teammate Milan Engel finished 28th when he had technical problems at the end: “Today was similar to yesterday, we drove a lot on sand. Sometimes we drove into passages where stones were hidden. I tried to keep the pace the whole time, it was few pit stops where I could rest. Then I came to the refueling station and the bike started to annoy me a bit. I think the rear pump of the tank is not working, my water cooler broke. Thank God that I am here at the finish line with such a result. It’s about the technique it was challenging.”

Engel’s motorcycle was repaired. “The problem with gasoline is being solved here. The KTM factory team found a lot of water in it, the pump was damaged due to impurities in the fuel – the strainer was very clogged,” explained Ervín Krajčovič, head of the Czech team ORION – Moto Racing Group.

In cars, it was a battle of French legends. Sébastien Loeb dominated the stage, Stéphane Peterhansel was 13 seconds behind him. Overall, Nasser al-Attija leads. Martin Prokop was losing, in the end he clocked the same 17th time as yesterday, and in the provisional standings he continuously moved from tenth to ninth place. But he was not satisfied.

“The loss is huge. We were frustrated from the start because we knew it wasn’t going to be good. Wet sand has resistance and when you add to that the high altitude, it’s a terrible combination. We’re being run over by cars from the start. This area it doesn’t suit our concept, we need to go through it and waste as little as possible,” he said.

In addition, he had problems with tire pressure and was unable to climb the high sand dunes, but even after a miserable day he improved in the standings.