Stage 11 was expected to be the longest stage of the 2021 Dakar, but it was shortened by 50 kilometres. Not only this, but a major surprise for all the Kamaz-Master fans was Dmitri Sotnikov missing a podium finish for the first time in this 43rd edition. Though the team Kamaz-Master has dominated the top three positions in the overall rankings with Sotnikov at P1, the Stage 11 rankings looked to be different.
At P1 was team Kamaz-Master’s Anton Shibalov, setting a time of 04:44:39 hours, followed by teammate Airat Mardeev with a difference of 03:52 minutes. At P3 was team Maz-SuperAuto’s Aliaksei Vishneuski with a difference of 04:09 minutes from the leader.
With four squads registered in the Dakar trucks category, Team Kamaz-Master acquired the top six positions in the stage rankings, while the trio from Kamaz-Master took the top three positions in the overall rankings.
Stage 11 started with Team Big Shock Racing’s Martin Macik in the lead, eyeing a third victory in a row, after his performance in stages nine and ten.
After the 306km mark, team Kamaz-Master’s Shibalov was seen leading his main rival and teammate Sotnikov, who was then followed by Maz-SportAuto’s Vishneuski with a difference of fewer than two minutes between the two. With just a distance of 30km remaining for the eleventh stage to conclude, Shibalov was still in the lead and took the win for the first time in the 43rd edition.
Unfortunately for Sotnikov, who has never missed a podium finish this year, he secured a P4 in the stage rankings, with a difference of 06:40 minutes from the leader. However, he is still P1 in the overall rankings, with an unbeatable lead of 40 minutes from Shibalov.
Stay tuned for updates on stage twelve, which goes from Yanbu to Jeddah, a 447km total distance including a 200km special.
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