Carlos Sainz makes it to the Bischa bivouac in a badly damaged Ford Raptor – The title defender talks about his disappointment – Chance of victory already over
Carlos Sainz finally made it back to the bivouac in Bischa after completing the 48-hour stage. The Spaniard rolled over on Monday in the first part of the 48-hour chrono, severely damaging his M-Sport Ford Raptor in the process.
The accident happened at kilometer 327. The car rolled over forwards over a dune and came to a stop on its roof. Sainz and co-driver Lucas Cruz were able to crawl out of the wreckage uninjured.
They waited for their team-mates Mitchell Guthrie and Kellon Walch. The four of them were able to get the Ford back on its wheels using a tow rope attached to both cars. Sainz and Cruz continued the journey with the badly damaged car.
“It was a complicated stage,” Sainz sighed. ”After we rolled over over the edge of a dune, we were able to continue with the help of our teammates. But then we had more difficulties.”
“The car overheated, we could hardly see through the broken windshield. On top of that, we had tire damage. The day just kept getting worse.” About 25 minutes were lost in the rollover and the recovery operation.
With the additional problems, the time lost on Sunday added up to around 50 minutes. Nevertheless, Sainz reached the E camp. The other Ford drivers, Guthrie, Mattias Ekström and Nani Roma, also spent the night there.
Not much could be repaired without spare parts from the assistance truck. On Monday, Sainz completed the remaining 360-odd kilometers of the stage. Finally, his time loss became clear. He was an hour and a half behind the leader.
Así quedó el coche de Carlos Sainz tras la etapa 48 horas del Dakar2025, ya está en el campamento de Bisha para su reparación pic.twitter.com/VBbBCgNCKY
— Mario Galán (@mario_galan11) January 6, 2025
When Sainz finally reached the M-Sport area at the Bischa bivouac, the fairing parts were missing from all four corners. The mechanics had a lot of work to do. “The summary is that everything went wrong,” says last year’s winner.
“Yesterday we had the accident and lost a lot of time. Then we got lost. This morning we had another puncture, and then we couldn’t find the right route at one point.”
“It’s been two days to forget. Two difficult days that are hard to accept because it happened right at the beginning of the race. But that’s how it is and we have to look ahead now. We have to try to help the team and learn as much as possible.”
“The race is still very long. My chances of winning are obviously over, but as I said, if I can help the team, then all the better.” The Ford Raptor, like the Dacia Sandrider, is a completely new car in the Ultimate class.
Ford now only has two cars in the top field
Ford now has only two cars in the top positions. Ekström is fifth overall after two stages, just 13 minutes behind. Guthrie is eighth, 23 minutes behind. It is still unclear whether Roma will be able to continue the race.
The two-time Dakar winner was experiencing engine problems at the 766-kilometre mark on Monday. Roma was towed by the assistance truck. The Spaniard had already reported overheating problems with the new Ford Raptor after the first stage.
“We knew,” says Sainz about the overall picture, “that this 48-hour stage would be crucial. For us it was, but for other people too. But that’s just the way it is. This time it hit us. It was a very difficult start to the rally.”
If Sainz is able to continue the rally with a repaired Raptor, the main focus will be on gaining experience with the new car. Will he go for individual stage victories now that he has nothing to lose?
“I need to recover first, emotionally and physically,” Sainz replies when asked about this. He appeared visibly disappointed in the bivouac. ‘I’ll try to help the team. If I win a stage, it would be good. My back hurts a bit, but I don’t think anything has happened. It was a hard impact.’
