Santolino wins for the first time on motorcycles and Loeb says goodbye after losing 49 minutes after a spectacular rollover

After the abandonment of Laia Sanz at the end of the first stage and of Carlos Sainz and Nani Roma at the end of the dantesque Chrono 48 Hours of the second, in the third stage (Bisha-Al Henakiya, 327 km) the toughness of the rally has hit to another favorite: Sébastien Loeb (Dacia). The French driver suffered a spectacular rollover at the beginning of the special and stopped at kilometer 63, with his participation very compromised.

On motorcycles, after three consecutive wins for Daniel Sanders, the Salamanca rider Lorenzo Santolino (Sherco) scored his first victory, the very first in the Dakar, with Edgar Canet (KTM), ninth, again spectacular for the rookie from La Garriga .

Motorcycles

Great victory for Lorenzo Santolino, with Edgar Canet ninth of the day

Finally Lorenzo Santolino, a 37-year-old driver from Guijuelo (Salamanca), takes great satisfaction in the Dakar. The one from Sherco, who had abandoned the previous edition on the second day due to a mechanical problem, took victory in the third stage. He beat the South African Bradley Cox (KTM) by 1m21s and the current champion, Ricky Brabec (Honda), by 4m01s.

Santolino, in his seventh participation in the Dakar, is the great asset of Sherco, which once again trusts in his perseverance and talent. Although he started late in the Dakar, and with little luck (abandonments in 2019 and 2020), the man from Salamanca achieved his best result in his third participation (2021) with a sixth place overall.

The lead on two wheels remains in the hands of Daniel Sanders (KTM), who paid for having to open the track for his victory in the second stage. The Australian, 23rd of the day, fell more than 14 minutes behind the Spanish winner, which has seen his substantial advantage in the lead reduced from 12 and a half minutes to just 1m57s over the American Skyler Howes (Honda), while that Ross Branch (Hero) is now at 2m05s. Sanders and Branch are the only two drivers who have not left the provisional podium since the start of the race.

Special mention deserves once again the Catalan Edgar Canet (KTM), who achieved a ninth place in the third stage, 5m31s behind Santolino. The one from La Garriga, in his first Dakar, is 12th overall.

Cars

Loeb gives way to Moraes, Ekström and Al Attiyah

The third stage of the Dakar in cars began with a spectacular accident by Sébastien Loeb, which destroyed his Dacia and his last options of aspiring to the Tuareg. The Frenchman had been able to cut his 33-minute deficit in the first part of the Chrono 48 hours on Sunday to just 18m56s on Monday, placing him sixth overall.

But at the first opportunity he overturned, at kilometer 12. He resumed driving but stopped due to mechanical problems at kilometer 63. At the 69th km control, Loeb was 30th, 49m53s behind the leader Mattias Ekström, and accumulated in the virtual general a delay of 1 hour and 4 minutes with the provisional leader, Henk Lategan (Toyota).