Stephane Peterhansel wins his 13th Rally Dakar crown

Frenchman clinches victory in grudge match with Sebastien Loeb

Stephane Peterhansel won his 13th Rally Dakar crown in a 12th special stage which was won by Sebastien Loeb with a narrow 19-second advantage.

Loeb won the 11th and 12th stages of the Rally, but Peterhansel, his compatriot and fellow Peugeot teammate, maintained his lead in the overall standings with a significant time difference and secured his 13th crown, reaffirming his unofficial title of "Mr. Dakar". This is the seventh Dakar that Peterhansel has won in the car category, having previously won six in the motorcycle category.

"Before the start of the race, nothing could be taken for granted. There was a great internal race and, in total, seven or eight drivers capable of winning. At the halfway point of the race, it was just the four of us, and in the last week it came down to a duel with Sebastien, a high-tension duel at a high speed," said Peterhansel.

"I would like to thank Peugeot for giving us these exceptional cars and, above all, for not imposing any team orders, which I find very fair play and very sporting, because we all had the same weapons for the battle," added the champion. "My tactic was to force Sebastien to run at 100% of his abilities. This would expose him to making mistakes and that's what happened, it wasn't a coincidence," he said.

The last stage on Saturday consisted of a route from Rio Cuarto in the central province of Cordoba to Buenos Aires.

In third place on the podium was Simon Despres, also from the Peugeot team, achieving a triple win.

Meanwhile, Sam Sunderland from KTM claimed the top position in motorcycles after finishing sixth in the last stage, becoming the first Briton to win a Dakar.

"Incredible, when I crossed the finish line I got emotional. Carrying the weight of the race on your shoulders for over a week is a tremendous burden. It's the first Dakar that I finish and end up in first position, it's crazy. I'm speechless," said an emotional Sunderland upon arrival.

"I'm the first Englishman to win the Dakar and I hope it helps generate greater interest in this event in my country," he added.

Russian Eduard Nikolaev from the Kamaz team won the championship in the truck category and secured his second Dakar crown after being crowned champion in 2013.

The Rally Dakar started in 1979 on roads in Europe and Africa and moved to South America in 2009 due to security reasons following terrorist acts. The 2017 rally passed through Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay on a demanding route of approximately 9,000 kilometers.

Source: AP