Al-Attiyah’s bid for a sixth career win in Dakar took a crushing blow on the 48-hour Stage 6 when his Prodrive Hunter screeched to a halt after a harsh landing just before the penultimate waypoint, leaving him stranded in Empty Quarter.
The Qatari driver was eventually able to get the car repaired with the assistance from his team, but by the time he reached the final bivouac at Shubaytah he had already dropped 2hr45 mins to the leaders.
