Dakar Day 4: Sainz Sr. wins stage
Carlos Sainz still has what it takes! Today, the Spaniard has picked up his 40th success on the Dakar allowing the brand-new Audi RS Q e-tron to enjoy its very first stage win on the world’s most prestigious rally-raid.
It is also the very first victory for a vehicle in the T1-Ultimate category, which is reserved for alternatively powered vehicles, a measure that is part of the first act in Dakar’s Future Plans.
At the finishing line for the day’s special, Sébastien Loeb arrived more than 33 min. behind stage winner Carlos Sainz. The nine times winner of the WRC and his co-pilot Fabian Lurquin broke their longitudinal transmission after 10 minutes of racing. They managed to salvage their day by making it to the finishing line on two-wheel drive!
Day 4 Results: Top-10
| Pos | No. | Driver/Navigator | Team | Time | Gap |
| 1 | 202 | C. Sainz (Esp)/L. Cruz (Esp) | Team Audi Sport | 02:26:51 | 0:00:00 |
| 2 | 225 | H. Lategan (Zaf)/B. Cummings (Zaf) | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 02:27:29 | 0:00:38 |
| 3 | 200 | S. Peterhansel (Fra)/E. Boulanger (Fra) | Team Audi Sport | 02:28:32 | 0:01:41 |
| 4 | 204 | N. Roma (Esp)/A. Haro Bravo (Esp) | Bahrain Raid Xtreme | 02:29:32 | 0:02:41 |
| 5 | 224 | M. Ekstrom (Swe)/E. Bergkvist (Swe) | Team Audi Sport | 02:29:50 | 0:02:59 |
| 6 | 205 | Y. Al Rajhi (Sau)/M. Orr (Gbr) | Overdrive Toyota | 02:30:37 | 0:03:46 |
| 7 | 207 | G. De Villiers (Zaf)/D. Murphy (Zaf) | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 02:31:01 | 0:04:10 |
| 8 | 201 | N. Al-Attiyah (Qat)/M. Baumel (And) | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 02:32:01 | 0:05:10 |
| 9 | 222 | L. Alvarez (Arg)/A. Monleon (Esp) | Overdrive Toyota | 02:33:14 | 0:06:23 |
| 10 | 221 | O. Terranova (Arg)/D. Oliveras Carreras (Esp) | Bahrain Raid Xtreme | 02:35:02 | 0:08:11 |
Overall Results After Day 4: Top-10
| Pos | No. | Crew | Team | Time | Gap |
| 1 | 201 | N. Al-Attiyah (Qat)/M. Baumel (And) | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 09:31:22 | 0:00:00 |
| 2 | 211 | S. Loeb (Fra)/F. Lurquin (Bel) | Bahrain Raid Xtreme | 10:09:02 | 0:37:40 |
| 3 | 222 | L. Alvarez (Arg)/A. Monleon (Esp) | Overdrive Toyota | 10:13:28 | 0:42:06 |
| 4 | 207 | G. De Villiers (Zaf)/D. Murphy (Zaf) | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 10:16:44 | 0:45:22 |
| 5 | 205 | Y. Al Rajhi (Sau)/M. Orr (Gbr) | Overdrive Toyota | 10:18:51 | 0:47:29 |
| 6 | 208 | V. Vasilyev (Raf)/O. Uperenko (Lva) | Vrt Team | 10:20:55 | 0:49:33 |
| 7 | 209 | M. Prokop (Cze)/V. Chytka (Cze) | Benzina Orlen Team | 10:26:08 | 0:54:46 |
| 8 | 223 | S. Halpern (Arg)/B. Graue (Arg) | X-Raid Mini Jcw Team | 10:32:54 | 1:01:32 |
| 9 | 203 | J. Przygonski (Pol)/T. Gottschalk (Deu) | X-Raid Mini Jcw Team | 10:38:09 | 1:06:47 |
| 10 | 221 | O. Terranova (Arg)/D. Oliveras Carreras (Esp) | Bahrain Raid Xtreme | 10:39:26 | 1:08:04 |