Dakar 2022 Stage 10: Quintero ties record; Peterhansel wins

Seth Quintero earned a slice of Dakar Rally history during Stage 10 of the 2022 event as its most decorated competitor took the overall checkered flag Wednesday.

Stephane Peterhansel, the 14-time winner known as “Mr. Dakar,” won the car category in the 759-kilometer segment from Wadi Ad-Dawasir to Bisha.

Peterhansel finished more than 2 minutes ahead of Audi teammate Carlos Sainz, and Orlando Terranova finished third for Bahrain Extreme.

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By triumphing in Stage 10 Peterhansel joined teammates Sainz and Mattias Ekstrom as 2022 Dakar Rally winners, ensuring that Team Audi’s trio of drivers won in the debut of the manufacturer’s hybrid RS Q e-Tron. After a poor opening stage for the Audi trio amid complaints from Sainz that FIA regulations left the electric car underpowered, the team sorted out mechanical gremlins, suspension challenges and weight disadvantages.

“It was a perfect day for us,” Peterhansel said. “No navigation mistakes, no issues. I was waiting for this day. Usually, it’s not my goal to try to win a stage, but this year, it’s special.

“We haven’t had any big mechanicals since the start of the second week, so we’re making good progress and having fun driving the car. I’m not necessarily a stage hunter, but each Audi driver has now won a stage, and that’s fantastic. When Carlos became the first driver to win a Dakar stage in an electric car, it was a milestone, now we confirmed that performance. This is good for morale, not least because it comes after a complicated start to the rally. We need to win in 2023. Failure is not an option.”

🏅 @s_peterhansel has won today's stage, following in the footsteps of his @Audisport teammates, Carlos Sainz and Mattias Ekström, in his new RS Q e-tron. Is the #DakarFuture closer than we think? 🙌 #DakarFuture | #Dakar2022 pic.twitter.com/BFrUB8ozGz

— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 12, 2022

With two stages remaining, Nasser Al-Attiyah (who was seventh Wednesday) still holds the overall lead by 32 minutes, 40 seconds over Sebastien Loeb.

“We completed the stage without losing too much time,” said Al-Attiyah, who is trying to notch his fourth overall Dakar Rally championship. “We only conceded a minute to ‘Séb’, so we’ll start in a decent position tomorrow. We had no punctures today, the car was just perfect and Mathieu navigated well. We’re getting there, little by little. I said I didn’t want to take risks, I simply want to set a high pace.

“It’s not over yet, there are still two days to go and even a podium spot will be hard to get. We’ve been thinking of victory since Day 1. We’re not here to win stages. Last year we took seven and finished second, this time we’ve only claimed two and we’re in the lead.”

Said Loeb: “What I’ve been saying from the beginning is that I wanted to give it my all every day and see how it worked out. In terms of raw performance, even if we go full blast, it is hard to open up a gap, as the Audis are always faster and we struggle to match their pace. We’re second now, the gap is too big and the race is no longer in our hands, but we’re still hanging in there.”

Meanwhile, Quintero remained unbeaten for the eighth consecutive stage in light prototype, triumphing by more than 2 minutes over teammate Cristina Gutierrez Herrero.

NEVER GIVE UP: Seth Quintero focused on breaking Dakar Rally stage win record

“It’s nuts,” Quintero said. “I’m mind-blown. I’m going to have a heart attack. You never know. We don’t have our phones in the car, so we can’t look at the times. We try to get a rough gauge at the fuel stops. We lost 3 or 4 minutes trying to find a waypoint that we missed. It’s kind of a mess today, but magically we’re here.

“I’m stoked about it. I’ve got two more stages to go, so we’ll try to go on ticking them off. To tie a record that was set 18 years before I was born is absolutely amazing. I really want to try and make everyone back home proud.”

With his 10th victory in Stage 10 of the 2022 Dakar Rally (nine specials plus the prologue), the San Marcos, California, native tied the event record for stage wins set by Pierre Lartigue during a 17-stage Dakar in 1994.

Though the Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team driver is out of class title contention because of his Stage 2 mechanical failure, Quintero, 19, will have two more stages to try to break and extend the record.

Other notable developments Wednesday:

–Austin Jones finished fifth in Stage 10 of the 2022 Dakar Rally, and the American maintained an 11-minute lead in the SSV division.

“It’s been hard,” Jones said. “All these guys are really fast, everyone’s really good this year, everyone’s doing really well. The competition’s hard. My navigator is doing a great job, my team (is) giving me a great car and supporting me every day. It’s not too big of a lead, but as long as we maintain this to the finish, it doesn’t matter if you win by a second or an hour, a win’s a win.”

–Pablo Copetti fell out of contention in Quad, losing nearly eight hours during an eighth-place finish.

–Defending bike winner Kevin Benavides was knocked out of contention by an engine failure.

🏍 @kmbenavides was obviously very disappointed and sad when he had to abandon the stage due to a broken engine. The #1 will not be able to defend his title. 🥺#Dakar2022 pic.twitter.com/8OxbuH3Ji7

— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 12, 2022

Here are the stage winners and the top three overall in each category after Stage 10 of the 2022 Dakar Rally:

Car

Stage 10 winner: Stephane Peterhansel (FRA), 2:52:43. Overall: 1. Nasser Al-Attiyah (QAT), Toyota Gazoo Racing, 33:13:37; 2. Sebastien Loeb (FRA), Bahrain Raid Extreme, 33:46:17; 3. Yazeed Al Rajhi (SAU), Overdrive Toyota, 34:09:25.

Bike

Stage 10 winner: Toby Price (AUS), 3:05:32: Overall: 1. Adrien Van Beveren (FRA), Monster Energy Yamaha Rally Team, 33:27:06; 2. Sam Sunderland (GBR), GasGas Factory Racing, 33:33:05; 3. Pablo Quintanilla (CHL), Monster Energy Honda, 33:33:21. Other U.S. notables: 7. Andrew Short, Monster Energy Yamaha Rally Team, 34:01:03; 8. Mason Klein, BAS Dakar KTM Racing Team, 34:04:55; 9. Ricky Brabec, Monster Energy Honda, 34:05:11. Withdrew: Skyler Howes, Husqvarna Factory Racing.

Truck

Stage 10 winner: Dmitry Sotnikov (RAF), 3:14:15. Overall: 1. Dmitry Sotnikov (RAF), Kamaz-Master 35:58:08; 2. Eduard Nikolaev (RAF), Kamaz-Master, 36:08:26; 3. Anton Shibalov (RAF), Kamaz-Master, 36:42:35.

Light prototype

Stage 10 winner: Seth Quintero (USA), 3:22:11. Overall: 1. Francisco Lopez Contardo (CHL), EKS — South Racing, 39:43:03; 2. Sebastian Eriksson (SWE), EKS — South Racing, 40:38:59; 3. Fernando Alvarez (ESP), South Racing Can-Am, 39:43:03. Notable: 10. Seth Quintero (USA), Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA, 54:42:33.

SSV

Stage 10 winner: Rokas Baciuska (LTU), 3:36:55. Overall: 1. Austin Jones (USA), Can-Am Factory South Racing, 40:55:24; 2. Gerard Farres Guell (ESP), Can-Am Factory South Racing, 41:07:18; 3. Michal Goczal (POL), Cobant-Energylandia Rally Team, 41:11:02.

Quad

Stage 10 winner: Marcelo Medeiros (BRA), 4:11:04. Overall: 1. Alexandre Giroud (FRA), Yamaha Racing – SMX -Drag’on, 42:21:01; 2. Kamil Wisniewski (POL), Orlen Team, 44:57:47; 3. Francisco Moreno (ARG), Drag’on Rally Team, 45:04:32.

PAST RECAPS

DAY 1: Nasser Al-Attiyah takes overall lead as Audi drivers struggle

DAY 2: Sebastien Loeb wins; Austin Jones takes SSV lead

DAY 3: Led by Seth Quintero’s rebound victory, U.S. drivers and riders shine

DAY 4: Overall leader Nasser Al-Attiyah wins stage after penalty

DAY 5: Petrucci becomes first MotoGP veteran to win bike stage at Dakar

DAY 6: Quintero continues impressive win streak in lightweight prototype

DAY 7: Loeb wins in overall; Jones retakes SSV lead

DAY 8: DTM champion Mattias Ekstrom wins first stage

DAY 9: Americans charging as Seth Quintero nears win record

Vicki Golden has earned a career worthy of a thousand stories and 805 Beer tells at least one of them, as “Inverted Perspective” premiered March 30 on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.

At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.

Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.

Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.

“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”

805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”

Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.

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The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.

“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”

*Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer*

While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.

“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”

Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.

Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.

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Golden 805 Beer — *Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer*

“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.

“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”

The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.

“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.

“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”

Dakar Rally 2022, Stage 10: Seth Quintero ties record for wins; Peterhansel wins stage

Vicki Golden and 805 Beer tell a unique story from an Inverted Perspective

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