– Al-Attiyah and Hirvonen third and fourth in the overall standings
– Five Mini ALL4 Racing vehicles make it to the top 10
In the eighth stage, from Salta to Belén, Nasser Al-Attiyah (QAT) and Mathieu Baumel (FRA) secured the eagerly anticipated stage win, thus beating Carlos Sainz in the Peugeot in the battle for the win.
Today, the driver from Qatar made perfect use of his experiences in the sand to win the stage with his MINI All4 Racing. Behind him, the positions five to seventh also were clinched by Mini All4 Racing pairings: Mikko Hirvonen (FIN) /Michel Périn (FRA) finished fifth, followed by Nani Roma / Alex Haro (both ESP) and Orlando Terranova/Ronnie Graue (both ARG). Erik van Loon / Wouter Rosegaar (both NDL) completed today’s strong Mini All4 Racing performance by finishing 10th.
Al-Attiyah held the lead nearly throughout the 393-kilometre special stage. In the closing stages, however, the racing turned into a close battle as he dropped back behind Sainz, after the final way point. But the Mini All4 Racing driver kept on pushing, passed Sainz another time and won the special stage. “It feels just great to have won and have been able to put pressure on the competitors,