From Dune Bashing to Sensor Crashing: TOYOTA’s Rollercoaster Ride on Dakar’s Day of Drama

Alright, strap in for a rollercoaster of a day at the 2024 Dakar Rally, where TOYOTA GAZOO Racing’s squad experienced more ups and downs than a politician’s popularity rating! On Stage 9, covering a not-too-shabby 661 kilometers from Ha’il to Alula, the team had to tackle everything from sandy dunes to terrain as rocky as my last holiday romance.

Leading the charge for TGR was the dynamic duo of Guy Botterill and Brett Cummings. Despite being new to this madness, they clocked the 5th fastest time, only 10 minutes and a smidgen (1 second, to be precise) behind the stage leaders. Sitting in 9th overall, Guy is proving to be as promising as a cold drink on a hot day.

Lucas Moraes and Armand Monleon, the team’s beacon of consistency, hung onto third place like a cat on a curtain, despite losing 11 minutes and 3 seconds to the stage winners. They’re now trailing the lead by a somewhat hefty 1 hour, 12 minutes, and 2 seconds.

Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy had a day rougher than a badger’s beard. A missed waypoint and a 15-minute penalty shoved them down from 5th to 8th overall. Talk about a day going from bad to worse!

Rookie Saood Variawa, along with Francois Cazalet, might have been higher up the order if not for a pesky water pressure sensor acting up. They finished 19 minutes and 50 seconds behind the leaders, now sitting in 20th place overall.

Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz, meanwhile, are out of the running for the top spot, but they’re still scrapping for points like seagulls at a chip shop. Despite navigational hiccups and mechanical gremlins, they’re not throwing in the towel just yet.

Three more stages to go, and next up is Stage 10, a 371-kilometer loop starting and ending in Alula. If this stage was a movie, it’d be a blockbuster with all the terrain twists and turns!

Team Principal Shameer Variawa sounded a bit like a proud dad, praising the team’s grit despite the navigation nightmares. Guy Botterill praised Brett’s note-taking skills and their solid pace. Lucas Moraes admitted to getting lost but remained optimistic. Giniel de Villiers described their stage as beautiful but challenging, and Saood Variawa, despite sensor issues, is keen for the upcoming stages. Seth Quintero, despite car troubles, is ready to fight another day.

So, there you have it, a stage that was as unpredictable as trying to use a chocolate teapot. The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing team is hanging tough, ready to face the next challenge head-on. Stay tuned, folks, because this rally’s still got plenty of twists and turns left!

DAKAR 2024 – STAGE 9 RESULTS

DAKAR 2024 – STANDINGS AFTER STAGE 9

The post From Dune Bashing to Sensor Crashing: TOYOTA’s Rollercoaster Ride on Dakar’s Day of Drama first appeared on Fuelled.