Quito -
This Sunday, the second part of the Dakar Rally began, which extends until January 15 in Saudi Arabia. Ecuadorian driver Sebastián Guayasamín summarized his performance in the first stages of the 43rd edition and, although he expressed "frustration" for not fighting for the overall classification in the SSV category, he emphasized that his main motivation is to represent Ecuador in the toughest rally raid in the world and complete his seventh participation.
After a rest day in the competition, the Dakar continued with a "marathon stage" between Ha'il and Sakaka, the seventh stage of the route, "a stage in which there is no refueling, so the car must be taken care of, because it must endure two stages," said the tricolor driver in contact from Saudi Arabia.
Guayasamín spoke about his participation in the competition and highlighted his position among the top 20 until the third stage when he suffered damage to the engine of the Polaris RZK XP Pro, a setback that was added to the gearbox failure, a combination of unforeseen events that left him out of the fight for the general classification.
"In my previous participations, I had never been among the top 20 and suddenly, seeing myself there was a great emotion; but, unfortunately, after the third stage, we no longer fought for the overall, only stages. We were frustrated by that, because it was not what we came to look for, but also happy because we continue in the race," said the capital driver, paired with Argentine navigator Ricardo Torlaschi in car 428.
-- Ancient ruins, more dunes and more camels…
The best landscapes from the 7th stage#Dakar2021 pic.twitter.com/dNT2Xgn3cA
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 10, 2021
Ha'il marked "the second half" of the competition for Guayasamín. "We have six more days of race ahead, and the mission is to finish the Dakar. The strategy we have set is to go all out every day. We squeeze more and more out of the car and feel that we are making a lot of progress because everything that was not done in tests last year, we are doing well here," he commented.
The competition ends on Friday in Jeddah, the goal of the 43rd edition of the Dakar and the main objective of the South American duo.
"In the remaining days of the competition, I hope to give my best. You can't have perfect days only, something always happens in the Dakar, but despite the problems, this has been a remarkable participation and we hope to finish on a high note," said Guayasamín. (D)