Dakar 2022: Henk Lategan wins Stage 5, Sebastien Loeb closes gap with Nasser Al Attiyah

Bengaluru, January 7: South African driver Henk Lategan won Stage 5 of FIA 2022 Dakar Rally currently underway in Saudi Arabia, as Sebastien Loeb gained nearly three minutes on leader Nasser Al Attiyah.

Lategan claimed his first Dakar stage win in his Toyota, finishing 1min and 58sec quicker than nine-time World Rally Championship winner Loeb.

Argentinian Lucio Alvarez reached the finish line after the 421kms special third in the stage and remains third overall.

Dakar 2022: Al Attiyah wins Stage 4, extends lead over Loeb Dakar 2022: Al Attiyah wins Stage 4, extends lead over Loeb

Three-time Dakar winner Al Attiyah had to settle for eighth on the day while Spain's rally legend Carlos Sainz and France's 14-time winner and defending champion Stephane Peterhansel struggled as they tried out the electrified drivetrains of their Audi RS Q e-tron for the first time in the Dakar.

In the bikes category, Australian Toby Price took the stage honours after the special was halted early due to logistical problems.

Dakar 2022: Gritty Harith Noah proves his class yet again Dakar 2022: Gritty Harith Noah proves his class yet again

The two-time winner moved up to 12th overall, still more than 30 minutes behind leader Sam Sunderland of Britain, who won the title in 2017.

The Dakar 2022 car race is being treated to the sight of Loeb putting his Prodrive BRX Hunter into full cruise mode. The off-road racing legend is trying everything he can to reel in Qatari ace Al Attiyah.

"We got in front in Nasser who had a tough job opening the road with no bikes in front. Then we were passing each other as we found the way to the finish line. Unfortunately it was impossible to get back more time than we did today," said Loeb.

Al Attiyah, the champion in 2011, 2015 and 2019 is not an easy opponent to throw off course in the desert and the 51-year-old seems in a particularly determined mood this year.

Despite opening the stage, the Qatari still has his Toyota Hilux T1+ an impressive 35 minutes ahead of Loeb in the general classification.

"Today we had no lines from the bikes to follow so I needed Mathieu (Baumel) to do a good job. There's still a long way to go. We need to be clever and do what we can to avoid problems," said Al Attiyah.

It has not been an easy Dakar debut for Audi Sport as they try out the electrified drivetrains of their Audi RS Q e-tron at the world's toughest off-road rally. A stage win for Sainz has been the highlight of the rally so far. Also in evidence is a strong team spirit between the three-man driving team which also Peterhansel and Sweden's Mattias Ekstrom.

"It wasn't a very good stage for us. It started OK but then we broke a damper and lost a lot of time. I've to thank my team-mate Stephane who stopped and gave me his damper so I could carry on," said Sainz.

Meanwhile, as per AFP news agency reports, the injuries suffered by French driver Philippe Boutron in a blast is being investigated by French prosecutors as a suspected terror attack.

Boutron's son had earlier said that his father had emerged from a coma following the explosion on December 30, days before the start of the Dakar.

Dakar Rally 2022 Preview: Stage set for duel in the Saudi Arabian deserts Dakar Rally 2022 Preview: Stage set for duel in the Saudi Arabian deserts