MOTORSPORT
Damien Smith
RACING LINES
A year ago, Carlos Sainz Sr broke his back trying to win the Dakar Rally. This month, at 61, the two-time World Rally Champion returned to the deserts of Saudi Arabia to claim his fourth victory on the epic two-week, near-5000- mile event, in a groundbreaking hybrid Audi. No wonder they call the great man El Matador.
The multiple spinal fractures left us wondering whether Sainz was finally done with the Dakar. No one would have thought less of aman already ranked among rallying’s greatest heroes. To recover, recommit for a 17th Dakar and then win in a complex car that had proven too flawed for victory in 2023 is a monumental achievement.
SAINZ vs LOEB
It was the dream duel: Sainz versus nine-time WRC king and fellow rallying ‘galactico’ Sébastien Loeb. In truth, Sainz always held the upper hand, having reined in his natural aggression for measured consistency. Perhaps he is showing his age, after all. The Spaniard didn’t win a single stage, whereas Loeb scalped five of the 12 in his Prodrive Hunter – yet it was the Audi that led overall most of the way.