#Dakar2021 Rest Day NEWS Kamaz Master Rally Team | Service Park

#Dakar2021 Rest Day NEWS Kamaz Master Rally Team | Service Park

KAMAZ-master: Mardeev’s victory at the stage, 3 crews are in Top-3 of the general classification

The sixth stage of the Dakar Rally 2021 in Saudi Arabia was held along the Al-Qaisumah – Ha’il route on Friday, January 8.

For Andrey Karginov's crew of KAMAZ-master, yesterday became a real disappointment. Having lost about 10 minutes in the starting trap, the truck number 500 was coming closer to the leader with every kilometer and made a decisive attack in the final third of the distance, showing the best time at the stage. Unfortunately, the first victory at the Dakar 2021 did not happen: the stewards penalized the Russians for the missed navigation point, and a 20-minute penalty threw Karginov back to seventh place. Arriving at the bivouac, the crew’s navigator Andrey Mokeev told what had happened on the way.

"It was a very difficult day in terms of navigation. A lot of people wandered and quite seriously went off the course – as cars, so bikes and quads. Five trucks met in one place - they confused each other, interfered. It happened, because it was purely my mistake. We missed a hidden point somewhere. We will sort it out not happen this in the future, and try to correct everything. This happened in the area of ​​the fifth or sixth kilometer, where a lot of points were. They are of different levels and caliber. Unfortunately, we missed the hidden point that did not open in the GPS," - described the situation Mokeev.

Thursday turned out really harsh for the Dakar contestants. Experienced navigators of four-wheeled crews and representatives of the bike category noted that the organizers made the stage difficult to the maximum, and navigation - a real lottery, where, beyond knowledge, one had to count on good luck. But that was yesterday. The sixth stage of the rally-marathon promised to be not less extreme.

Everyone who has ever been to the legendary Dakar will say that it exhausts people both physically and psychologically. And as far as moving to the north of the Arabian Peninsula, the weather conditions also change. Nighttime temperatures drop to 8-10 degrees, while sub-freezing values are not rare. Taking into account the fact that many racers have to spend the night not in campers, but in tents, a comfortable rest between starts is out of the question.

The town of Al-Qaisumah, which is close to the local same-named airport, and that has become a haven for the rally caravan, is a small village in the east of Saudi Arabia. The border with Kuwait is only over 100 kilometers away, and the coast of the Persian Gulf is a little further. Al-Qaisumah is a historical point on the map of the kingdom. In 1950, the Transaravian oil pipe line was opened here. In transit through Jordan and Syria, it connected Al-Qaisumah with the port terminal of Sidon in Lebanon and became the largest at that time in the world. The last barrel of oil, which has become the main source of income for Saudi Arabia, was pumped to the other end of the peninsula 31 years ago, and in 2002 maintenance of the 1214-km pipe line was completed.

The first half of the Dakar 2021 is also coming to an end. Friday's 448-kilometer special stage, leading athletes to the long-awaited rest day in Ha’il, has undergone serious corrections: the 113 km long appendix has been cut and replaced by an 11-kilometer straight section. This decision was made by the Dakar organizers due to late arrival of many race contestants the day before and the desire to make the raly program slightly easier for today. Bikers more than likely appreciated this change, because initially according to the route description they were frightened by incredible difficulties and a possible overnight stay in the desert.

At every stage the truck crews are separated by a few seconds and minutes at the finish line. And in such situation command tactics play an important role. KAMAZ-master team discusses it on a daily basis and adjusts it depending on the events in the race. Before the marathon stage, scheduled for Sunday and Monday, it is very important not to lose the gained advantage and, if possible, strengthen positions in the general classification.

The starting list for Friday was perfect for four crews on trucks KAMAZ-43509. The leader of the Dakar 2021 Dmitry Sotnikov went for a mixed start at 12:10 after 19 cars and three buggies, and Anton Shibalov, second in the overall standings, started at 12:14, two minutes behind Aliaksei Vishneuski. Fighting for the podium Airat Mardeev went at 12:20, Andrey Karginov - two minutes later. Thus, the last crew from Naberezhnye Chelny took the role of a fast assistance, not forgetting about their own high result.

Overall standings after Stage Six

Truck
1. Dmitry Sotnikov (RUS) Kamaz Master 24h26m18s
2. Anton Shibalov (RUS) Kamaz Master +00h37m34s
3. Ayrat Mardeev (RUS) Kamaz Master +01h01m43s

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