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Five-in-a-row lifts Sebastien Loeb into Dakar Rally top two

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Sebastien Loeb took his fifth stage win in a row to slot into second overall in the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia on Friday as Toyota's reigning champion Nasser Al-Attiyah continued his cruise towards a fifth title.Nine-time world rally champion Loeb, racing for the Bahrain Raid Xtreme team, finished the marathon 12th stage from Empty Quarter to Shaybah three minutes and 19 seconds clear of Audi's Mattias Ekstroem.The Frenchman, who has won six stages in total on this year's event, is now an hour and 27 minutes behind Qatar's Al-Attiyah with two stages remaining before the rally ends in Dammam on Sunday.Al-Attiyah was third on the stage and can afford to lose time while controlling the race."It's good to finish the marathon stage and bring the car back in good condition.

If we finish in the top five each day, that's OK for me, we have a big enough lead," commented the Qatari.Loeb became the second driver in Dakar history to win five stages in a row, matching the feat of Finland's Ari Vatanen in 1989, and is on course to equal his best ever Dakar finish."It was a perfect day: no mistakes, no stalling, no about turns.

We drove well and the car worked perfectly.Second place is our goal, that’s why we’re pushing," said the Frenchman, whose chances of winning disappeared in the early stages."I prefer to be in the situation we are in now than the one in the first week.

We’ve made a big comeback. In general, we’ve had a good rally, but we haven’t had much luck. But that’s just the way it is."In the motorcycle category, Australian KTM rider Toby Price took over the lead from American Skyler Howes on a factory Husqvarna.Two times Dakar winner Price leads Howes by 28 seconds."I think that trying to have a strategy for the race at

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DAMMAM: Qatari driver Nasser Al-Attiyah on Sunday won his fifth Dakar Rally driver’s title and second in a row, with Argentina’s Kevin Benavides securing his second motorbike crown.
Saudi Arabia will continue to be the home of the Dakar Rally for the next few years with race director David Castera telling AFP "we still have so many deserts to explore".
Qatar's Nasser Al-Attiyah won the Dakar Rally car crown for the fifth time on Sunday while Argentine KTM rider Kevin Benavides triumphed on two wheels to take his second title in Saudi Arabia.
Qatari driver Nasser Al-Attiyah won his fifth Dakar Rally driver's title and second in a row on Sunday after the iconic test of endurance finished in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
Qatari driver Nasser Al-Attiyah won his fifth Dakar Rally driver's title and second in a row on Sunday after the iconic test of endurance finished in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
AL-HOFUF, Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia will continue to be the home of the Dakar Rally for the next few years with race director David Castera telling AFP “we still have so many deserts to explore.”Castera was speaking after Saturday’s penultimate stage with Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah poised for his fifth title.“I’m very happy we’re staying here, with so many deserts still to explore and with this country’s enormous potential,” he said.Motorsport’s toughest endurance test moved to the conservative Kingdom in 2020 after a spell in South America on an initial 10-year contract.Dakar organizers ASO announced the switch in 2019 saying a new chapter of the gruelling race’s history would be written in the “mysterious and vast deserts” of the land.Castera confirmed a clause in the Saudi deal to pull out after five years would not be taken up.“Today there’s been a big change, it’s progressing at a fast rate,” commented Castera.“I’m not here to play politics but to organize a sporting event which has the legitimacy to exist here because the terrain suits it.”Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in attracting high profile sporting events including tennis, golf and Formula One to its shores and is preparing a joint bid to host the 2030 World Cup.And last month five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Saudi side Al-Nassr in a deal worth 200 million euros.In the race, Al-Attiyah should complete the cruise to his fifth title.

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