Toyota Gazoo Racing in Lead as Dakar Rally Rages

With six stages to go in Dakar 2022, Toyota’s Al-Attiyah remains the driver to beat. But a former WRC champ is nipping at his heels.

The Dakar Rally is one of the most demanding tests of man and machine the racing world has ever devised. For 2022, entrants have been challenged to complete 12 stages over two weeks, along a 5,000-mile route through the inhospitable deserts of Saudi Arabia. As I write this, the race is halfway complete, and the Toyota Gazoo Racing squad is putting on an impressive show.  Of the top four positions in the standings, Toyota drivers currently occupy three of them.

The Gazoo Racing team’s strength was demonstrated during Stage 5, when Henk Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings piloted their GR DKR Hilux T1+ to a win over Dakar veteran and nine-time World Rally Championship winner Sébastien Loeb’s Prodrive BRX. That victory comes on the heels of win in Stage 4, where Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Mathieu Baumel also managed to best Loeb — even if their fellow Toyota drivers encountered problems which kept them from taking the checkered flag.

At the start, it appeared Lategan was headed for victory, but thanks to a broken rear wheel hub, their progress was abruptly stopped. This wasn’t something that could be fixed on the fly, and waiting for the arrival of a support truck cost them the day. Small problems — most notably punctures — kept the other Toyota drivers out of the top three positions. With six stages to go, Al-Attiyah remains the driver to beat, and while anything can happen on the Dakar, his 35-minute overall lead bodes well.

But the success so far hasn’t come without controversy. During the opening stage of the rally, Toyota’s Giniel De Villiers collided with motorcyclist César Zumarán, and while Zumarán was ultimately able to finish the stage, De Villiers was fined for not stopping to inquire if he was OK. On Stage 3, De Villiers actually ran over the KTM of rider Ali Oukerbouch, which left the bike mangled and its rider out of the race. Penalties for both incidents will put the driver out of contention for victory in the rally. More news on the Dakar when we have it!

Photos: Toyota Gazoo Racing

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