Price and Sanders on the pace in Dakar dunes

Australian stars Toby Price and Daniel Sanders are back towards the top of the timesheets after a strong stage 5 of the 2024 Dakar Rally.

After “struggling” and losing time on Stage 4 both Price and Sanders found themselves drifting down the order, but have hit back at an important time.

Both riders were in the top four of stage honours in the short but gruelling 118km journey that allowed 500km plus liaison from Al Hofuf to Shubaytah and fell less than three minutes short of victory.

Price secured the podium finish, being third fastest just a minute and 39 seconds behind stage winner Pablo Quintanilla, who led a Honda one-two, while Sanders was just over a minute behind in fourth.

Importantly both Aussies are now well inside the top 10 of the general rankings with their rallies back on track, just over half an hour away from returning leader Ross Branch.

Price’s previous best stage result this year was seventh and after a “confusing” Stage 4, the KTM rider was back to his best in the dunes and was happy to get through a “tricky” day quickly.

“It was quite tricky with a lot of drops in there (and) dangerous, but we got through with decent pace,” Price said.

“I missed a couple of drops which got the heart rate up a bit but we are here and that is the main thing because in this stage you could push a bit too hard and can catch you out (but) we are happy.”

Sanders survies falls and thrives

For Sanders the return to form was particularly important. The GasGas rider arrived at the rally having recently recovered from a major crash and was getting into his work until a fuel leak saw him lose more than a quarter of an hour on Stage 4.

It meant Sanders drifted to 11th in the general classification, but after an impressive bounce back to fourth in Stage 5 he is now eighth, 37 minutes off Branch.

To make the ride even more impressive, Sanders revealed he had multiple falls on his way to fourth place.

“It was a little better today being short, hot and fast with a lot of sandy soft drops,” he said.

“It was good to survive because I fell off a couple of times and compressed the leg a bit.

“Just made sure the femur is still in one piece, so far so good.

“There was a little bit better feeling on the bike and we have a massive stage tomorrow. 

“It will be a long slog but I am excited and ready for it.”

Brinkman hits new heights

It was also a good day for Dakar debutant Glenn Brinkman and co-driver Dale Moscatt, who enjoyed their personal best stage so far.

The pair finished 19th in the T3 category after one hour, 57 minutes and 36 seconds of driving.

As a result they rose nine spots overall to 35th in class following their most productive day in the dirt.

Brinkman was delighted after soaring through the dunes.

“It was pretty cool because we had a good run through there, passing 8-10 trucks and about 18 cars, while we only got overtaken twice by two of the fastest T3 drivers,” he said.

“The 118km were all dunes and I feel like they are not my strong point, but when we get in there we do quite well.

“I feel like I struggle more in the level 1 dunes because they are more sharp drop offs while the bigger ones don’t bother me so much.

“After the first 30-40km in the dunes I picked up the speed and started going faster.”

Al-Attiyah makes his move

Defending Dakar Rally champion Nasser Al-Attiyah sent a major statement in his title defence by taking out Stage 5.

Al-Attiyah flew through the dunes to take his first stage win of the rally by just under two minutes ahead of Guerlain Chicherit.

The win has had a massive impact on the overall classifications with the Qatar-based defending champion soaring up to second and edging ahead of Carlos Sainz Senior.

However, Al-Attiyah is still nine minutes adrift of leader Yazeed Al Rajhi.

Despite winning Stage 4, Sebastien Loeb’s rally took a turn for the worse after he was hit with a 15-minute penalty for missing a waypoint.

Amazingly Loeb revealed it was actually intentional.

“Yeah, we missed a waypoint on purpose,” the Frenchman said.

A massive 48-hour stage is next where 549km with an overnight camp in the desert lie ahead with competitors forced to drive straight through the Empty Quarter with dunes as far as the eye could see.

Main image by Marcelo Maragni / Red Bull Content Pool

2024 Dakar Rally bikes classification after stage 5

2024 Dakar Rally cars classification after stage 5

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