Adrien Van Beveren lead most of Stage 8 but made a tactical stop allowing Kevin Benavides to grab the win of the day. Ricky Brabec continues to lead Ross Branch by 42 seconds. The days are quickly slipping away, and a champion will be crowned this coming weekend. Hearts are heavy in the bike class as Spanish rider Carles Falcon passed away after falling off his bike during stage two. Falcon was airlifted to a hospital in Riyadh and later transferred to Spain where he died.
In the car class, Nasser Al-Attiyah’s engine stopped forcing him to retire from the stage 8. Al-Attiyah has struggled throughout the rally with mechanical issues. The stage winner of the day was Mattias Ekstrom for the Audi team. Carlos Sainz is still leading the overall standings.
Mitch Guthrie Jr. is still out front with the overall lead in the Challenger class with a solid second place finish today. Saudi driver Saleh Alsaif took the stage win.
Images Courtesy of A.S.O.
