Puck Klaassen has won the third stage in the Challenger category and is now the fifth woman ever to win a Dakar stage. The Dutch driver was fastest over the 421-kilometre special around AlUla, beating Yasir Seaidan by 8:25. In the SSV class, Brock Heger claimed his fourth Dakar stage victory and took over the overall lead.
It’s a historic moment for Klaassen and for the new alliance between KTM X-Bow and G Rally Team. “Puck Klaassen has done it! After taking the lead in the Challenger class at kilometre 114, the Dutchwoman remained unshakeable to the finish,” the organisation reported. She is the fifth woman to win a Dakar stage, after Jutta Kleinschmidt (cars), Cristina Gutiérrez (T3 and Challenger), Sara Price (SSV and Stock) and Dania Akeel (Challenger).
Seaidan first Saudi Challenger leader
Yasir Seaidan took advantage of David Zille’s problems to take over the lead in the overall classification. The Saudi is thus the first driver from his country to lead the Challenger class. He now has a 2:53 advantage over Klaassen and 7:32 over Pau Navarro.
Klaassen took over the lead at kilometre 114 from Dania Akeel, who had already lost more than sixteen minutes. “Klaassen led ahead of Pau Navarro’s Taurus (+1:25) and David Zille (+2:56),” the organisation noted. At kilometre 219 she had extended her lead to 3:17 over Navarro.
Zille drops back
David Zille, the winner of the first stage, had another difficult day. The Argentinian dropped to fifth place in the classification (+12:04), while Seaidan took advantage to seize the lead. “At kilometre 219, the Saudi led Lucas del Rio (+2:31) and Pau Navarro (+3:40), while Zille had dropped back to +4:24,” the organisation reported.
Spierings back in top ten, problems for GPRs
Besides Puck Klaassen’s historic victory, several other Dutch drivers were active in the Challenger class. Paul Spierings finished eighth at 30:41. The Dutchman started further back after his problems yesterday and lost some time in the closing phase, as did several other drivers. Lex Peters finished an impressive tenth in 44:51, while his teammate Kees Koolen finished 12th in 51:58. Pim Klaassen finished 13th in 57:21, finishing at the same time as his uncle Dave.
Daniel Kersbergen once again failed to finish the stage, struggling with clutch problems. This is the third consecutive day he’s received a stage penalty. His teammate Henri van Steenbergen also stopped several times today. Riné Streppel and Dick van Culenborg also had troubled days and are still on their way.
Al Kuwari and Busi with setbacks
Abdulaziz Al Kuwari came to a standstill after 84 kilometres due to an accident, although the crew remained unharmed. The Qatari had just posted the sixth-fastest time after 80 kilometres before the incident occurred.
Rebecca Busi experienced a nightmare in the second stage. She was stationary for hours with mechanical problems and had to complete the last 250 kilometres in the dark. “It was a surreal experience,” she said. Despite everything, she is still in the race.
Heger wins fourth stage and takes lead
In the SSV category, Brock Heger claimed his fourth Dakar stage victory. The American won two stages last year, the prologue this year and now the third stage. He beat Gonçalo Guerreiro by 5:18 and João Monteiro by 5:32 after an exciting duel.
“After a long battle with Portuguese drivers Gonçalo Guerreiro and João Monteiro, he tasted victory and also took over the lead in the overall classification,” the organisation reported. Heger now has a 43-second advantage over Guerreiro.
De Soultrait drops due to puncture
Xavier de Soultrait lost his leading position after a puncture. The Frenchman finished eighth at 18:29 and dropped to third place in the classification (+11:07). “Heger now has an advantage of 43 seconds over Guerreiro and 11:07 over Xavier de Soultrait, who dropped from the top to third place after being hampered by a puncture,” the organisation reported.
Monteiro chases first victory
João Monteiro delivered an impressive recovery. At kilometre 167, Heger had built up a lead, but Monteiro made up nineteen seconds by kilometre 219. At kilometre 340, the difference was just nineteen seconds. “The Portuguese driver is hot on the heels of the American because at kilometre 258 he was still 2:17 behind,” the organisation noted. He ultimately finished third at 5:32, pursuing his first-ever Dakar victory.
Polaris dominates again
Polaris placed four cars in the top five of the overall classification: Heger, Guerreiro (2nd), De Soultrait (3rd) and Alexandre Pinto (5th, +24:08). Kyle Chaney is the best-classified Can-Am in fourth (+16:43), while “Chaleco” López had a difficult day and finished tenth in the stage at over 31 minutes.
Aczel seventeenth in SSV
In the SSV class, Richard Aczel finished seventeenth with navigator Wouter Rosegaar at 46:30.
The 736-kilometre stage around AlUla combined sandy canyons with rocky formations and made high demands on navigation, with wind and recent rain having wiped out tracks on the immense open plateaus in the finale.
