ABU DHABI: Sebastien Loeb put Bahrain Raid Xtreme on the path to recovery in the World Rally-Raid Championship on Tuesday as archrival Nasser Al-Attiyah extended his lead in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.
Loeb and Fabian Lurquin in their BRX Prodrive Hunter were on the verge of an early exit after mechanical problems prevented them from completing Monday’s special stage, ending their hopes of a first win in the event.
BRX technicians worked through the night to fit a new engine to the Prodrive Hunter, and Loeb responded by collecting valuable championship points as he followed Al-Attiyah’s Toyota home on today’s 365 km stage, which looped around Qasr Al-Sarab.
The nine-time World Rally Raid Champion was second quickest on the day to the Qatari, whose second successive desert stage win gave him an overall lead of 18 minutes, 19 seconds from Saudi Arabia’s Yazeed Al-Rajhi in another Toyota.