MOTORSPORT: Aussie Dakar disappointment

Nasser Al-Attiyah led from start to finish to claim his fourth Dakar Rally crown in Saudi Arabia with Toyota.

The Qatari was untroubled despite the speed from a range of rivals, headed by rally legend Sebastian Loeb and including previous Dakar winners Carlos Sainz and Stephane Peterhansel, in sharp contrast to the three high-profile Australian entries.

Early leader in the motorcycle division Daniel Sanders crashed out of the event on a non-competitive liaison stage with his GasGas bike and injured his arm, while previous winner Toby Price lost any chance of another victory for KTM with navigation problems on the very first day.

Meantime Molly Taylor and veteran co-driver Dale Moscatt had almost every problem imaginable while contesting the side-by-side class for the first time in their Can-Am.

Price stormed back from his setback but could still only manage 10th place, while Taylor and Moscatt finished 14th in the SSV category and also set a number of top-10 stage times in their class.

“Losing time on that first day put me on the back foot a little for the rest of the stages, and the way things are now, any mistakes can lose you a lot of time on the others because things are so close,” said Price.

“The terrain here in Saudi makes for a really fast race too. A lot of the stages are sprints to the finish, but the atmosphere is good and it’s a good place to be.”

It was the first time Price had finished the Dakar without standing on the podium, as he had previously been in the top three or medivaced to hospital after a crash.

There was no crash for Taylor, but the Dakar rookie – and new Xtreme-E champion – had everything from punctures to mechanical dramas that included a brake-system fire and failure on the final day.

“Every single emotion. We’re so proud to be here at the finish, through all the ups, all the downs,” Taylor said on her socials.

“Lots of positives to take away, lots of learnings. And I think we experienced a true Dakar.”

For Sanders, who needed surgery, his 120km/h crash happened as he was on an early-morning transport stage while running third in the bikes.

“I’ve broken my elbow in two bits and there’s a few other little bits floating around. Fractured my wrist down the bottom – just the radius, so it’s not too bad – damaged my kidneys a fair bit, so she’s not in too good shape at the moment, but we’ll be good soon,” he said.

At the front of the field, Al-Attiyah established a solid early lead and was able to pace himself through the second half of the two-day event to win by 27 minutes and 46 seconds after more than 38 hours of competition.

Loeb was quick and finished second in his Prodrive BRX Hunter, ahead of hometown hero Yazeed Al Rajhi in another Toyota, but it was the all-new hybrid Audi RS Q e-tron prototypes that caused the biggest surprise.

All three Audis had dramas, but all three also set fastest times as Mattias Ekstrom took the best result with ninth place and Sainz was 12th, while Peterhansel was only ranked 57th after tearing the suspension from his car and abandoning one day of competition.

But Price spoke for the finishers, and especially the Aussies, after the final stage to the Saudi capital of Jeddah.

“I’m excited for 2023 already,” he said.