Veteran Sainz wins stage five in Dakar Rally

Hail (Saudi Arabia) - Sainz finished 2min 56sec ahead of his main rival, defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah

Spanish veteran Carlos Sainz, the 2010 and 2018 champion, consolidated his overall lead of the Dakar Rally after winning Thursday's fifth stage, his 34th stage victory in the race being held this year in Saudi Arabia.
The 57-year-old Mini driver clocked 3hr 52min 01sec around the 563km (353km special) route from Al Ula to Hail through boulder-strewn, sandy surroundings including hills occasionally scattered with desert grass.
Sainz finished 2min 56sec ahead of his main rival, defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah of Qatar in his Toyota.
"We gained three minutes and pushed really hard at the end," said Sainz. "I'm very happy because the car is working well. I had a flat tyre at the start of the special, but I managed to make up the time."
Sainz added: "I'm doing the best I can, but tomorrow when we open the route, maybe it will be completely different."
Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel, nicknamed 'Mr Dakar' for his 13 victories in the marathon rally, followed up on his victory in Wednesday's fourth stage with a third-placed finish, 6:11 off Sainz's pace. "It was a completely different kind of stage today. For us it was not really perfect because we had two punctures," bemoaned Peterhansel.
"One at the beginning on a rock, but also one slow puncture on the dunes. I don't know why, maybe just a small piece of bush.
"So we had to stop two times and the second time Carlos overtook me and I tried to follow him on the dunes and the camel grass, but he was really fast."