Al-Attiyah cuts Peterhansel's lead with Dakar Rally Stage 8 victory
Toyota driver Nasser Al-Attiyah closed the gap to his X-raid Mini rival Stephane Peterhansel with a victory in the eighth stage of the Dakar Rally


Having slipped nearly eight minutes behind Peterhansel with a subdued showing in the first part of the marathon stage, Al-Attiyah brought the deficit back under five minutes with his fourth stage win of the 2021 event in the 375km loop between Sakaka and Neom on Monday.
Starting fourth on the road, the three-time champion immediately grabbed the lead at the first waypoint from Carlos Sainz Sr and Sunday's stage winner Yazeed Al-Rajhi, with Peterhansel sitting 30 seconds behind in fourth place.
Peterhansel managed to snatch the lead from Al-Attiyah by Waypoint 4, but the Qatari driver never slipped more than 20 seconds behind the 13-time winner and reclaimed top spot just two checkpoints later.
Once back in front, the Toyota driver steadily extended his advantage, eventually winning the stage by just under a minute from defending champion and X-raid driver Sainz, with Peterhansel eventually finishing 3m03s down in third.
Former WRC driver Khalid Al Qassimi secured his best result of 2021 so far in fourth, finishing 12m44s behind Al-Attiyah, with PH Sport team-mate Cyril Despres ending up another five seconds adrift in fifth.
With Al-Rajhi encountering mechanical problems later in the stage, Jakub Przygonski assumed the mantle of the top Overdrive Toyota driver, narrowly beating the factory-run Yaris of Shameer Variawa to sixth.
Vladimir Vasilyev finished eighth in an X-raid Mini 4x4 ahead of Ford privateer Martin Prokop and Optimus driver Christian Lavieille.
Rally legend Sebastien Loeb's run of misfortune continued on Monday as he was forced to stop twice in the first 40km, the second time due to a lack of spare tyres after his Prodrive-run BRX1 contender suffered two punctures.
His Bahrain Raid Xtreme team-mate Nani Roma provisionally finished 19th after three consecutive stages inside the top 10.
With the two-part marathon stage complete, Peterhansel leads the overall standings by a reduced margin of 4m50s from Al-Attiyah, with the French driver's team-mate Sainz now 38m55 behind in third.
Przygonski sits comfortably in fourth from Roma, who is likewise well clear of Vasilyev and Al Qassimi.
With Prokop eighth, factory Toyota driver Giniel de Villiers remains ninth overall ahead of Lavieille.


Hubert Auriol obituary: Dakar Rally legend dies aged 68
Loeb's eventful Dakar ends in retirement after Stage 8 stoppage

Injury, COVID, camels and redemption: A MotoGP star's Dakar odyssey
Danilo Petrucci’s decision to switch to rallying at the conclusion of his time in MotoGP at the end of 2021 raised many eyebrows. Deciding to make his rally raid debut at the Dakar courted scepticism. With his debut almost over on several occasions before it began, Petrucci’s Dakar odyssey was a wild affair full of ups, downs and a run-in with a camel. He sat down with Autosport to reveal all
The positive future implications of Audi's creditable Dakar debut
OPINION: Audi has been a disruptive presence on the 2022 Dakar Rally, with its new hybrid RS Q e-tron taking three stage wins so far. Its impressive pace and resilience on one of the world’s toughest tests also bodes well for the Dakar’s future as it seeks to attract new manufacturers
How Prodrive plans to use trial by Dakar to spur it to victory
Having tasted plenty of success in the World Rally Championship in the past, Prodrive took its off-road excursions to a new level with its first Dakar Rally entry this year. Now well-versed in the challenges that the famous rally-raid event possesses, Prodrive can learn from those lessons for next year's tilt at Dakar honours
Why Loeb has joined forces with an old enemy for Dakar
The nine-time World Rally champion is heading to the Dakar Rally with an all-new project, and is joining up with the team he often fought against in the WRC - Prodrive - in his quest to finally add the most famed rally raid of them all to his bulging CV
Richards on Prodrive's new Dakar challenge
With a stunning success record in motorsport, Prodrive is targeting a new crown by entering the 2021 Dakar Rally. David Richards provides an update on the programme, how COVID has slowed its plans and its options on who sits behind the wheel of its new car
Why Alonso is already exceeding expectations in Dakar bid
How significant was Fernando Alonso's first cross-country rallying podium on a Saudi Arabian event last weekend? Very. The next leg of his post-F1 quest for versatile glory is going very well so far...
What Alonso learned from his best Dakar test yet
Double Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso took on one of his biggest challenges yet in the five-day Dakar warm-up event, Rally Morocco. Alonso gives his thoughts on his progress in a "bittersweet" event, and whether he will contest the Dakar
Why Alonso must heed Loeb's Dakar failures
Fernando Alonso is edging closer to a Dakar debut, but he should take heed of the lessons rallying legend Sebastien Loeb has learned through several near-misses, despite his promising performances at the event