Dakar Rally: Sunderland, Casale, Al-Attiyah, Stacey win opening stage, Santosh 85th

The 2014 edition of Dakar Rally kicked off in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires featuring 161 bikes, 45 quads, 137 cars and 63 trucks.

In stage 1, a 144 km road section preludes to the special stage where the 406 competitors are timed. This is followed by a 519 km run into the heart of Argentinean countryside to reach the first bivouac.

BIKES: SUNDERLAND WINS STAGE 1, SANTOSH 85th QUICKEST

KTM rider Sam Sunderland started the proceedings in Dakar Rally with the fastest time in stage 1 - 1:18.57 - five seconds clear of his Honda rival Paulo Goncalve. The promising Brit won the second stage of the rally last year, but was forced to withdraw from the event.

“I think I had a good special and that's always a reason to be happy,’’ the 25 year old said. “The bike didn't miss a beat, it was very fast and I probably posted a good time. I'm a contender... for the first day. I hope I'm also a contender at the end, but we've only covered 175 kilometres and there's still a long road before us."

Four time Dakar rally winner Marc Coma finished a minute behind his fellow KTM rider in third place.

CS Santosh (bike number 59) - carrying the hopes of India - finished down in 85th place with a time of 1:41.24. TVS in collaboration with Sherco Racing fared far better, with their French drivers Alain Duclos and Fabien Planet clocking the fifth and 26th fastest time of the day.

Results

1. San Sunderland KTM 1h 18m 57s
2. Paulo Gonçalves Honda +5s
3. Marc Coma KTM +1m 12s
4. Bort Barreda Honda +1m 41s
5. Alain Duclos Sherco TVS +2m 08s
6. Jeremías Israel Honda +2m 16s
7. David casteu KTM +2m 36s
8. Matthias Walkner KTM 2m 42s
9. Pablo Quintanilla KTM 2m 58s
10. Ruben faria KTM 3m 02s

QUADS: CASALE AND SONIK REPLICATE LAST YEAR’S FIGHT IN STAGE 1

Defending champion Ignacio Casale fended off last year’s runners up Rafal Sonik to take the lead of 2015 Dakar Rally, with Uruguay’s Sergio Lafuente rounding off the podium.

Lafaunte’s participation in the remainder of the rally has been called into question, however, after the Uruguayan dislocated his thumb in the opening stage.

Results

1. Ignacio Casale Yamaha 01h 37m 08s
2. Rafal Sonil Yamaha + 01m 07s
3. Sergio Lafuente Yamaha +01m 23s
4. Mauro Almeida Yamaha +02m 41s
5. Mohammed Abu-Issa Honda +03m 03s
6. González Yamaha +03m 49s
7. Nelson Sanabria Yamaha +05m 24s
8. Sebastian Halpern Yamaha+05m 40s
9. Sergey Karyakin Yamaha +06m 44s
10. Victor Gallegos Honda +06m 45s

CARS: AL-ATTIYAH LEADS THE WAY ON DAY 1

Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiyah seized the lead in the cars category in his Mini, with a 22 second advantage over home hero Orlando Terranova. Former NASCAR driver Robby Gordon finished a minute adrift in third.

Last year’s winner Nani Roma had a heartbreak when an oil pressure brought his Mini to a halt, effectively putting out of contention for the victory.

Peugeot’s return to the ‘toughest race on the earth’ turned out to be rather average, at least by the timesheets on day 1, with their drivers languishing in eighth and tenth places.

Results

1. Al-Attiyah/Baumel Mini 1h 12m 50s
2. Terranova/Graue Mini +22s
3. Gordon/Campbell Gordini-Hummer + 1m 04s
4. De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz Toyota Hilux +1m 12s
5. Holowczyc/Panseri Mini ALL4 Racing +1m 16s
6. Spartaro/Lozarda Renault +1m 18s
7. Ten Brinke/Colsoul Toyota Hilux +1m 38s
8. Sainz/Cruz Peugeot +2m 06s
9. Van Loon/Rosegaar Mini +2m 20s
10. Peterhansel/Cottret Peugeot +2m 35s

TRUCKS: STACEY LEADS FROM VLIET

2007 Dakar winner Hans Stacey started the 2014 edition of the rally in style by winning the first stage with a margin of 35 seconds from countrymen Marcel van Vliet. Ales Loprais and and Martin Kolomy set identical times in stage 1, and lie third and fourth, with their starting order determining their position in the provisional classifications.

A marathon stage 2 is set to follow on Monday with varying terrains making life even tougher for the surviving competitors. By the end of the rally, the competitors would have covered over 9000 km in three different countries of South America.

Results

Hans Stacey Iveco 1hr 30 43s
Marcel van Vliet MAN +35s
Ales Loprais MAN +47s
Martin Kolomy MAN +47s
Martin van den Brink Renault +58s
Airat Mardev Kamaz +1m 43s
Eduard Nikolaev Kamaz +1m 47s
Wulfert van Ginkel Ginaf +1m 56s
Gerard de Rooy Iveco +1m 57s
Siarhei Viazovich +2m 06s