Clever management after the previous day's stage win: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk fifth on the last stage before the rest day Second position in the overall standings secured: Saudi Arabian-Brandenburg duo cushions the disadvantage of the route opening Stage...
Full throttle in the Empty Quarter: duel for the “Dakar” victory goes down to the wire
Further contributions
Yazeed and the speed: Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk new “Dakar” runners-up with stage win
Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk take advantage of the late start and reduce the gap at the Dakar Rally to around seven minutes Stage from Al-Henakiyah to al-'Ula forms the first part of a so-called marathon stage Be careful, but at speed: stony ground requires...
Shorter, but crisp: Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk remain in the leading group at the Dakar Rally
Fifth day of the rally, third stage: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk lose time in the Dakar Rally due to tricky navigation and stony surfaces Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk remain within striking distance of the overall leaders in fourth place, gap widens to 11:45 minutes...
Two in a hurry – Queen’s stage of the “Dakar” clearly goes to Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk
Stage victory on Epiphany: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk win 48-hour stage of the Dakar Rally Saudi Arabian-Brandenburg duo take second place in the overall standings Extreme driving and navigational challenges on 967-kilometer special stage Bisha, Saudi Arabia...
Spiritual “Dakar” lead for Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk after part one of the 48-hour stage
Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk deliver a strong performance from 19th on the queen stage of the first "Dakar" week Saudi-Arabian-Brandenburg duo complete the first 618 of 967 test kilometers on two-part endurance test Second part of the 48-hour stage follows Monday on Epiphany...
First day, but a used one – Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk lose time before extreme stage at the “Dakar”
413-kilometer loop around Bisha with challenges for drivers and co-drivers is the true prelude to the 2025 Dakar Rally Pace stage before the big hammer: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk skillfully dose the "Dakar" urge, but also lose time with numerous technical...
Dakar Rally (20+25)² – Prologue of the mathematicians, Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk in 18th position
Solid start to the Dakar Rally: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk finished the first showdown of the desert classic in 18th position.
Finishing unfinished business? Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk are among the secret favorites at the Dakar Rally
There is still a score to settle with the Dakar Rally: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk are once again among the secret favorites for the 2025 edition of the desert classic.
Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk celebrate another Saudi Arabian Championship title
Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk secure the title in Saudi Arabia with their third win of the season Sovereign and unthreatened success at the Qassim Rally Test under competitive conditions: Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk test suspension set-up for the Dakar Rally Buraydah,...
Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk runners-up for the second time in a row
Saudi Arabian-Brandenburg duo celebrate another second place in the FIA World Cross Country Rally Championship (W2RC) Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk finish mixed season finale at the Morocco Rally in fourth place overall WRC title and victory at the Morocco Rally go to Nasser...
- Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk lose their narrow “Dakar” lead on the first stage in the Rub al-Chali
- Before the decisive final two stages: Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk 2:27 minutes behind Henk Lategan/Brett Cummings
- Good starting position for both duos on the long desert stage on Thursday
Shubaytah, Saudi Arabia (January 15, 2025) – Short, but crisp and above all: tricky. Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk kept their chances of victory alive on the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally. After 4,568 of 4,982 stage kilometers, the Saudi Arabian-Brandenburg duo is 2:27 minutes behind Henk Lategan/Brett Cummings (RSA/RSA, Toyota) in second place in the overall standings, which they had narrowly led before the stage. On the remaining 414 stage kilometers, spread over the next two days, the outcome of the race is still wide open. Two more tough desert stages in the Empty Quarter are then on the agenda. It was Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk who opened the route through the dunes early on. At kilometer 82, the runners-up got stuck in the deep sand and lost almost four additional minutes. Stage ten of the 2025 Dakar Rally was something of an appetizer for the Des(s)ert: The ultra-short, but enormously demanding special stage over 120 kilometers consisted of more than nine tenths of dunes: small, large, medium, gently rising and steeply sloping, broken and those from the picture book. The terrain of the Empty Quarter – the largest sand desert in the world – is also on the agenda for the next two days, which will determine the outcome of the Dakar Rally. The Rub al-Chali stretches over 680,000 square kilometers.
QUOTES
“We were allowed to open the route early on, which is not always easy in the dunes. We got stuck once, that happens. But everything is fine. We’re not putting any pressure on ourselves and are looking forward to the next two days in the Empty Quarter.”
YAZEED AL-RAJHI
“As expected, we lost time on this stage. After around 20 kilometers we had already caught up with those who had started ahead of us and lost a lot of time. Around 40 kilometers before the finish, we got stuck and had to maneuver our way out with sand plates. That cost us about four minutes. Tomorrow we’ll be in a better starting position and might be able to put things right.”
TIMO GOTTSCHALK