The third stage of the Dakar Rally, today’s 438-kilometer timed special stage, once again demonstrated the toughness of the rally. Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz with the Audi RS Q e-tron have managed to maintain their fight for the win, despite suffering navigation problems in the first part, and a puncture that delayed him in the final part of the race when it seemed that he would take the victory of the day.

The Spanish drivers crossed the Al Salamiya finish line in sixth position, three and a half minutes behind the day’s winner Lucas Moraes (Toyota). Carlos and Lucas are now second in the Dakar standings, just 29 seconds behind leader Yazeed Al Rajhi with Toyota.

Carlos Sainz: “Another day. Today was a typical Dakar day with complicated navigation. At the beginning we had a small mistake and lost a few minutes. Then we had a puncture further on. It wasn’t one of these stages that you get round, but we finished and we’re still close to the lead. It was also another good day for the team, so we are happy and now we have to think about tomorrow”.

Tomorrow’s stage
Stage 4: Al Salamiya > Al-Hofuf Link > 332 km – Special > 299 km
Another long day to reach Al Hofuf, located in the center of a huge oasis planted with three million date palms. To compensate for the long mileage of the stage, especially at the end of a marathon, the level of difficulty of the terrain, which is quite fast, has been lowered a little. On the other hand, navigation will be very complicated, as it was the day before. This is where some drivers and teams may lose some precious minutes, or even more.