Dakar 2013 Stage 11: Again with the flooding? I thought it was a desert race?

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Once again, torrential rains caused the stage to be neutralized.  Of course the bikes were able to get through despite the flooding, mainly because two wheels are greater than four and they start quite a bit earlier in the day than everyone else.  Hit the jump for today’s American dominated results!

Cars:

Photo Courtesy: Maindru Photo/TOYO Tires

Robby Gordon took the win in today’s dramatically abreviated stage.  Torrential rains caused officials to halt the stage at the first chekpoint.  The overall standings remain the same with the majority of the field recieving a neutralized time equivalent to the last car to make it to the first checkpoint.

Peterhansel continues to do exactly what is necessary.  Barring a huge mistake he will probably collect a record 11th Dakar trophy.

Motorcycles:

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American rider Kurt Caselli collects the second stage win in his rookie Dakar outing.  Today’s challenging stage was considered to be one of the bigger navigation challenges in the Rally and Caselli did well to come home almost five minutes ahead of second place Gonclaves.  Unfortunately, Caselli’s disastrous result in the 8th stage means he is well down the field and a top twenty finish is probably going to be a stretch.  On the other hand winning two stages in your Dakar debut is no mean feat and hopefully we’ll see Kurt in future Dakar rallys.

The overall podium positions remain the same with Despres extending his lead over teammate Faria who is followed closely by the Lopez..  The overall is still up for grabs but Despres is looking like a good bet to clinch his fifth Dakar victory.

Stage 11: La Rioja-Fiambala

Finally, I thought I’d throw in a couple pictures of Ayrat Mardeev’s Kamaz truck, he’s currently running third overall and I just like how it looks.

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