Dakar: Sainz wins leg 12

One-two for Volkswagen on the twelfth stage of the Dakar Rally: Factory driver Carlos Sainz (Spain) and co-driver Michel Périn (France) won the 484 kilometer stage from Ayoun-el-Atrous (Mauritania) to Kayes (Mali) in their Race Touareg by 3:53 minutes from their Volkswagen comrades Carlos Sousa/Andy Schulz (Portugal/Deutschland) from the Lagos-Team.

It was Volkswagen’s seventh stage win and the third for double Rally World Champion Carlos Sainz during the 29th running of the "Dakar". Third position went to the French Mitsubishi driver and last year’s overall winner Luc Alphand.

The Volkswagen factor pairing of Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford (USA/South Africa) moved up the leader board after finishing eighth on today’s stage. The duo overhauled two-time "Dakar" winner and Mitsubishi factory driver Hiroshi Masuoka from Japan in the overall standings, and are now best placed Volkswagen team in fifth position. Sousa/Schulz are still seventh, Sainz/Périn moved up to ninth. Giniel de Villiers/Dirk von Zitzewitz (South Africa) finished the day in twentieth position in their Race Touareg 25:47 minutes behind Sainz and are twelfth overall.