Dakar 2023 // SS2: Rocky tyre hell for X-raid Mini
- Punctures cause time loss
- Tomorrow the Dakar moves on to Ha’il
The second stage of the Dakar 2023 from Sea Camp to Alula was an torture for the tyres. The extremely stony passages caused a lot of damage and time loss. The X-raid MINI desert racers were not spared from this either. Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov finished 22nd in the MINI JCW Buggy. Right behind them were their teammates Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi and Ola Floene, who also drive a MINI JCW Buggy. Sebastian Halpern and Bernardo “Ronnie” Graue finished 35th after some problems. Jakub “Kuba” Przygonski and Armand Monleon had to wait for the race truck and are currently still in the stage.
Sebastian Halpern: “The stage today was terrible. Over 300 kilometres with big stones. You had no chance to find your rhythm. We had two punctures and then drove slowly. But at kilometre 200 the front differential broke when we hit a big stone. A little later, a pipe on the power steering also burst and I had to finish without power steering. I’m pretty tired now.”
Ola Floene, co-driver of Al-Qassimi: “That was a tough day. Shortly after the start we had a double puncture. After that we had to drive very carefully, but Khalid handled the tyres extremely well. In addition, the tablet with the roadbook suddenly broke. I had a replacement with me, but I had to hold it in my hand the whole time. We are happy to be here.”
The third stage continues to Ha’il. The Dakar armada will stay there for two days. A total of 668 km are on the programme, 447 km of which are against the clock. The special stage, especially the first 50 kilometres, is said to be the most beautiful of this year’s Dakar. The route leads through canyons, where special attention must be paid to navigation. But some sandy passages also await the participants.
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Dakar Rally 2023 – result SS2
1. N. Al-Attiyah / M. Baumel – Toyota – 5h 00m 26s
2. E. van Loon / S. Delaunay – Toyota – 5h 00m 40s
3. C. Sainz / L. Cruz – Audi – 5h 05m 31s
4. M. Serradori / L. Minaudier – Century – 5h 11m 55s
5. L. Baud / R. Boulanger – Toyota – 5h 13m 26s
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22. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Buggy – 5h 42m 35s
23. Sh. K. Al-Qassimi / O. Floene – MINI JCW Buggy – 5h 43m 21s
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35. S. Halpern / B. Graue – MINI JCW Rally Plus – 6h 34m 11s
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tba. J. Przygonski / A. Monleon – MINI JCW Rally Plus
Overall standings after SS2
1. C. Sainz / L. Cruz – Audi – 8h 34m 26s
2. N. Al-Attiyah / M. Baumel – Toyota – 8h 36m 38s
3. M. Serradori / L. Minaudier – Century – 8h 59m 21s
4. S. Vitse / F. Lefebvre – MD – 9h 00m 06s
5. G. de Villiers / D. Murphy – Toyota – 9h 01m 04s
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21. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Buggy – 9h 46m 08s
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23. Sh. K. Al-Qassimi / O. Floene – MINI JCW Buggy – 9h 50m 38s
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32. S. Halpern / B. Graue – MINI JCW Rally Plus – 10h 39m 40s
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tba. J. Przygonski / A. Monleon – MINI JCW Rally Plus
