Sainz will take a 1:16:06s lead into Stage 12 at Yanbu, with Overdrive Racing’s Guillaume De Mevius (Toyota Hilux) now second in the general classification.
Loeb has dropped to third, 1:36:02s off the pace, but it could have been even worse for the Frenchman.
With Prodrive stablemate Nasser Al-Attiyah already out of the race, Loeb and navigator Fabian Lurquin were waiting for the assistance crew to pick them up before Chinese driver Yungang Zi arrived and donated parts from his own Hunter.
The nine-time World Rally Champion still needs a miracle to finally win the Dakar Rally in 2024 but his hopes of an overall podium are still alive.
“We lost more than one hour sitting on a rock,” said Loeb.
Super speedy internet with award-winning innovation. Get some.
“We thought that it was completely finished for us.
“Finally, we were lucky that Yungang Zi came by in his Hunter and had the spare parts that we needed.”
Helping his cause was the fact that trouble also struck Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Lucas Moraes, who had started the day third in the general classification.
Moraes stopped with about 60km to go in the special and subsequently limped his Hilux to the finish line at a cost of two hours, which relegated the Brazilian from third to ninth in the rally standings.
For Sainz (Audi RS Q e-tron), though, despite having to deal with a slow puncture, it was a pivotal day.
‘El Matador’ was quickest through most of the special and, while he was overhauled by the Overdrive Hiluxes of Guerlain Chicherit and De Mevius in the last 87km, he is now poised to make it four Dakar crowns.
Chicherit won the day by 5:32s to move up to fourth in the general classification and De Mevius pipped Sainz by another three seconds.
Stage 11 was the last stern test of competitors with 417km of special stage running across rocky terrain.
All that remains now is a 175km loop around Yanbu to complete Dakar 2024.
CLICK HERE for Bikes report
General classification: Cars Top 10
| Pos | Num | Nat | Driver | Team | Time | Gap |
| 1 | 204 | ESP | CARLOS SAINZ | TEAM AUDI SPORT | 46H 24′ 47” | |
| 2 | 221 | BEL | GUILLAUME DE MEVIUS | OVERDRIVE RACING | 47H 50′ 53” | + 01H 26′ 06” |
| 3 | 203 | FRA | SEBASTIEN LOEB | BAHRAIN RAID XTREME | 48H 00′ 49” | + 01H 36′ 02” |
| 4 | 211 | FRA | GUERLAIN CHICHERIT | OVERDRIVE RACING | 48H 06′ 07” | + 01H 41′ 20” |
| 5 | 208 | CZE | MARTIN PROKOP | ORLEN JIPOCAR TEAM | 48H 41′ 34” | + 02H 16′ 47” |
| 6 | 243 | RSA | GUY DAVID BOTTERILL | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 49H 05′ 18” | + 02H 40′ 31” |
| 7 | 209 | RSA | GINIEL DE VILLIERS | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 49H 14′ 56” | + 02H 50′ 09” |
| 8 | 223 | LTU | BENEDIKTAS VANAGAS | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING BALTICS | 49H 25′ 23” | + 03H 00′ 36” |
| 9 | 206 | BRA | LUCAS MORAES | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING | 49H 30′ 29” | + 03H 05′ 42” |
| 10 | 212 | FRA | MATHIEU SERRADORI | CENTURY RACING FACTORY TEAM | 49H 33′ 04” | + 03H 08′ 17” |
Discussion about this post