Toyota Gazoo Racing

After a tough start to the rally Giniel de Villiers didn’t give up. Luck wasn’t on his side during the first days, but on Thursday he hit back. In the 456 km long stage De Villiers went fastest in the car category, marking the 16th stage win of his long Dakar career. By winning the stage, the South African made up ten places in the overall classification and is now back in contention for a top ten spot.

Nasser Al-Attiyah had a massive task by opening the stage on Thursday. Although he lost a few minutes by doing so, the Qatari had a solid day where he controlled the damage very well. Al-Attiyah crossed the line in fourth and kept his second place in the overall classification. Shameer Variawa is getting to grips with the demands of the Dakar very fast. After a slow start, he gained a few places on Thursday.

Unfortunately, Toyota Gazoo Racing lost one of its competitors from the race. Rookie Henk Lategan crashed early in the stage and broke his clavicle. Co-driver Brett Cummings was unhurt after the incident. The South African duo have left the race, but the fact they showed a lot of potential is hopeful for the future.
 

Tim & Tom Coronel

The fifth stage of the Dakar Rally certainly wasn’t a walk in the park for most. Tim and Tom Coronel had another eventful day. Tom, who took over the wheel for this stage, did a fine job by bringing The Beast to the finish in a very respectable 34th place. Tim, on the other hand, read the notes during the stage to Al Qaisumah.

Riwald Dakar Team

After the mechanics worked day and night on the broken engine of Gert Huzink’s Renault, they managed to fix it on Thursday. Huzink was able to start in the Experience-category, a class for the participants who get a second chance in the Dakar. Despite his low starting position, Huzink managed to do a great stage on Thursday. He finished in P10 overall in the truck category.

Where others were going the wrong way early in the stage, Pascal de Baar and his co-driver were on fire from the off. De Baar finished in P12, which helps him to close in on the general standings. De Baar is one place shy of P10.

Mammoet Rallysport

The first half of the fifth stage were one of the hardest in this Dakar, especially when it came to navigation. Martin van den Brink did get lost for a short period of time, but also found the way back as one of the fastest. With help of co-driver Wouter de Graaff, Van den Brink secured a solid 12th spot on Thursday. Mitchel van den Brink left the back markers in the race behind and is now in contention for a top twenty spot on a regular basis.