For the still ill Bernhard ten Brinke it was not easy to continue yesterday, but today he was again sitting next to Tom Colsoul in the Toyota. “I almost got my energy back. Only my voice fails”, says Bernhard. The Dutch-Belgian combination did lose some time today, they ended up just outside the Top 10. Things went better for Giniel de Villiers and Fernando Alonso, the cars supported by Eurol came in sixth and seventh. Especially for rookie Alonso, a fantastic result. For the very large number of media present, the presence of the former Formula 1 world champion and Le Mans winner is the highlight of the daily reporting. After every finish it is very crowded for the press, but Fernando with the Eurol-logo on his chest is quietly speaking to everyone.

Kees Koolen and Jurgen van den Goorbergh arrived early today with a sixteenth time. After a tough stage with all those stones, they were back in the bivouac late yesterday, but the SSVs can also start a little later in the morning. After the first days with many flat tires, they too seemed to come in today without major problems.

The Coronel twins this Dakar seem to have broken with their habit of finishing in the dark more than once. Today we saw another good performance from Tim and Tom, they reached the finish in 31st place. Peter van Merksteijn also finished nicely today, in 22nd place he had a great drive. Good result, because this morning they had to start after a moderate day yesterday.

Truck

Martin van den Brink today was the best Dutchman in a strong seventh place with the powerful Mammoet truck, after a hassle-free day. Van den Brink: “We were quick and that sixth place gives a great feeling. We can definitely go even faster, but we don't want to take any risks. "

Pascal de Baar also had a great day, he finished sixteenth, just before his teammate Gert Huzink. The latter had a hard time with a flat tire, after which the new tire turned out to loose air as well, while a big dip in a hole shocked the crew litteraly. That blow caused backpains for mechanic Martin Roesink, so they had to take it a bit easier afterwards. By the way, Huzink turned out to be a striking appearance today with his helmet off; a lost bet has cost him his hair