#Dakar2021 Day 6 NEWS Kamaz Master Rally Team | Stage 6 Al Qaisumah-Hail

#Dakar2021 Day 6 NEWS Kamaz Master Rally Team | Stage 6 Al Qaisumah-Hail

20-minute penalty bereaved Andrey Karginov of victory at the 5th stage of the Dakar 2021

The fifth stage of the Dakar Rally 2021 in Saudi Arabia was held on the route Riyadh - Al-Qaisumah on Thursday, January 7.

On Monday and Wednesday the Russian drivers Andrey Karginov and Airat Mardeev faced a penalty time. Crew No 500 received a two-minute penalty after the second stage of the Dakar, and crew No 509 - per minute for second and fourth special stages. The last penalty did not affect Mardeev's position in the general classification, but moved him from sixth to eighth place at the end of yesterday's racing day. The deputy leader of KAMAZ-master team Eduard Nikolaev received an explanation from the judges.

“The penalties were charged for the zone with a speed limit. The guys started to slow down from the maximum speed of 140 kmh to 30 kmh. Considering the fact that the fight on the current Dakar goes for every second, on a difficult sandy surface it is not always possible to slow down in time to the necessary speed. And entering the speed limit area, the sensors measured overspeeding by 1-2 kmh", - said Nikolaev before the start of the fifth stage.

Other crews from different categories also faced with penalties. Judging by the comments of some racers, the problems could be in the GPS system, which incorrectly determined location of the sports vehicles.

Initially, the fifth stage of the Dakar was supposed to finish in the city of Buraidah, located more than 300 kilometers from the capital of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, but a few days before the start of the marathon, the control point on the race map shifted towards the Persian Gulf - to Qaisumah, located in the northeast of the kingdom. The increased distance was included into the liaison, and the total distance of the Dakar 2021 exceeded 8000 km.

Today's 456-kilometer special stage through the Ad-Dahna Desert has become a real hardcore stage and has prepared many unpleasant surprises. The weather also became worse: the sun was covered with thick clouds and it was rainy in some areas of the race. This time car and truck categories were divided at the start. This starting schedule allowed the truck crews not to lose pace on the impassibility, where lighter vehicles slowed down to a safe speed and “broke” them. Siarhei Viazovich was also in the start list - yesterday his MAZ could continue moving after almost 8-hour repair at the special stage. As the Belarusian driver, who had taken the second place after three stages in the general classification, said, the truck suddenly faded: the connection between the engine and the gearbox was lost, including from the sensors that removed rotation from the flywheel. After such a loss of time, it would be extremely difficult for the crew to fight for high positions.

The starting 10-kilometer area fell on low dunes on a fast sandy plateau, after which the rally caravan turned out on a 160-kilometer fast gravel road with crossing a stony river bed. And already at the very beginning, the navigators had to show all their skill not to get lost and choose the right course, allowing them to take a control point. Not everyone managed to cope with the task. For example, eminent contestants in the car category Carlos Sainz and Sebastien Loeb lost about 30 minutes each, and numerous bikers wandered, searching for the right path.

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