Dakar Rally : News from Leg 8For the eighth stage, 626 km, including 589 km against the clock, are on the menu. The competitors who will be fairly relaxed after the rest day will have to go through probably the most difficult special stage of the rally and certainly the
longest one. On the programme are a varied route with rocky tracks in the beginning of the special stage before returning to the Mauritanian sand that will take them up to the Tichit oasis. Once again, experience of the desert and of navigation will make the difference. The Mitsubishi drivers are favourites again… unless South-Africa's Giniel De Villiers is once again there to spoil their fun...
French biker Alain Delaunay is now stopped at km 25 of today's special stage and doing repairs on his bike.
Krystztof Holowczyc and his Belgian copilot Jean-Marc Fortin are now stopped at km 14 of the special stage with a torn rear axle and waiting for their assistance.
After his engine shut off at km 53 of the day's special stage, Romanian biker Marcel Butuza fell – fortunately without harm – and is now trying to repair.
Since his clutch broke on km 25 of today's special stage, Japanese driver Hiroshi Masuoka and his French copilot Pascal Maimon are now stopped and trying to repair.
After breaking suspension on km 25, German team Sandro Wallenwein-Thomas Schuenemann is now waiting for its assistance squad.
Victim of a fuel pump problem on km 25 of the day's special stage, Swedish female biker Annie Seel is now waiting for her assistance team.
As the first 8 cars passed km 169, South-African Giniel De Villiers was timed virtual leader of today's special stage, 5'01 ahead of Portuguese Carlos Sousa and 5'53 ahead of Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah.
The winner of the first stage of this 29th Dakar, Portuguese biker Ruben Faria broke his engine in today's special stage and is now waiting for the broom truck at CP1 (km 201).
After his engine broke on km 277 of the day's special stage, Argentinean biker Orlando Terranova is now waiting for his assistance team or... the broom truck.
Leader in the overall rankings, Spaniard Marc Coma went through CP3 in the lead and is now opening the way. On the clocking side, the Spaniard was at CP3 10'05 ahead of Frenchman Cyril Despres and 23'29 in front of Norwegian Pal Anders Ullevalseter.
