2023 Dakar stage 1 marked the proper start of the event after yesterday’s short prologue section. The first full-length stage was a 367 km run from the temporary city known as Sea Camp past the town of Yanbu. A 234 km, non-competitive, liaison would bring all the competitors back to the starting point at the end of the day’s racing.

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Quick Starter

It was SA lad Henk Lategan in a TGR Hilux who set the early pace at the 2023 Dakar stage 1. Lategan and his navigator Brett Cummings are looking to add to their brace of stage wins at previous events. Unfortunately they suffered a broken windscreen early in the day that compromised their pace.

Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist (Audi Sport) were keen to show that their prologue win was no fluke. The pair set a searing pace early in the day, regularly setting quickest times through the check points. Ekstrom was quicker than both his illustrious teammates, Carlos Sainz and Stephane Peterhansel, through most of the day.

Finding Their Feet

Ekstrom set the pace but there was plenty of action behind him. Crews surged and dropped back throughout the stage. The Prodrive Hunters of Sebastien Loeb and Guerlain Chicherit rocketed up the timesheets late in the day. They were chased hard by Carlos Sainz. South African Brian Baragwanath, in his 2WD CRT buggy, briefly featured near the top of the sheets.

Defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah (TGR Hilux) found pace late in the stage. Judging by the pace of other crews it seems that the Hilux team have a proper battle on their hands from a few different teams. It will be fascinating to watch this play out over the next two weeks.

Stage Winner

Ekstrom did not let off the gas and entered the final 100 km of the stage still leading. Loeb was in hot pursuit, aiming to make up one minute on his rival. Chicherit was also in close contention should the frontrunners falter. But the Frenchman had to keep one eye over his shoulder as a hard-charging Carlos “El Matador” Sainz drew level on the timesheets.

His late charge handed Sainz his 42nd Dakar stage win. He came home ahead of Loeb. Ekström’s early pace fell away late in the stage and he had to settle for third place. Chicherit finished fourth ahead of local man Yazeed Al-Rajhi in a privately entered Toyota Hilux.

Defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah was eighth in his Toyota Gazoo Racing Hilux. His South African teammates Lategan and Giniel de Villiers came home 11th and 13th, respectively, on the day. Post-stage penalties for Chicherit, Al Attiyah and Baragwanath meant that the final order was reshuffled, with a significant impact on the overall classification (see below).

General classification after 2023 Dakar Stage 1

  1. Carlos Sainz (Audi Sport) 3 hr 28 min 55 sec
  2. Sébastien Loeb (Prodrive BRX) + 10 sec
  3. Yazeed Al Rajhi (Overdrive Hilux) + 02 min 01 sec
  4. Guerlain Chicherit (BRX) + 02 min 03 sec
  5. Orlando Terranova (Prodrive BRX) + 07 min 05 sec
  6. Nasser Al-Attiyah (Toyota Gazoo Racing) + 07 min 17 sec
  7. Brian Baragwanath (CRT) + 07 min 51 sec
  8. Stephane Peterhansel (Audi Sport) + 08 min 51 sec
  9. Jakub Przygonski (X-Raid Mini) + 08 min 54 sec
  10. Henk Lategan (Toyota Gazoo Racing) + 11 min 45 sec