Sainz loses the lottery

Carlos Sainz left his stamp on the last stage of the Dakar, he had the pleasure of achieving his third partial victory at the close of the 2021 edition, which has finished on the third step of the podium, a good result that, however, “knows little” for a champion like ‘El Matador’. The title has taken it Stephane Peterhansel, who adds his 14th crown in the desert, for something they nickname him ‘Mr. Dakar’. The Frenchman has dominated the general with a single stage win, less than his two direct rivals, five (plus the prologue) of Nasser Al Attiyah and three from Sainz, but he has confirmed that the important thing about this adventure is to maintain regularity. Peterhansel has not left no top-4 day, and that equates to success in a competition that is not only decided with the speed of the piloting, but also with navigation and breakdowns.

There is a viralized image of Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz Which explains the reason for its drop in the rankings. In it, the Mini is seen turning around, changing direction several times. “We had a hard time understanding the roadbook”, laments the Madrilenian, who has compared the road book with “the lottery.” In the last edition, the first in Saudi ArabiaThe criticism was the other way around: the race started quickly because the organization had not had time to complicate the stages. The 2021 route has turned to the other extreme, a circumstance that has not pleased the triple Dakar winner: “It can’t be that every day everyone is getting lost.” Some more than others, we might add. Sainz gave up two half-hour days and there he said goodbye to his aspirations for success. Regardless of the impact that the roadbook had, the truth is that it was the same for everyone. And also that the champion did it with the same car than Spanish. We must congratulate ‘Monsieur Dakar’. And also to Carlos, who never gave up even though he was bordering on despair. He played the lottery, but this time it was time to lose.