PERFORMANCE OF THE DAY: A HISTORICAL TOP FIVE FOR FORD
An American driver leading the Dakar’s premier category is rather a rare thing. In fact, only three drivers have experienced such an honour:
. Robby Gordon after his victory on stage one of the Dakar in 2005 in Barcelona.
. Seth Quintero after his victory on stage one of the Dakar last year, in Bisha.
. Mitch Guthrie today, the first of the three to do it so far into the race.
This show of strength is all the more remarkable in light of the fact that the American brand Ford has also put five vehicles in the top five places of the general rankings. The provisional leader is followed by Martin Prokop, in a privately prepared Raptor, then Mattias Ekström, Carlos Sainz and Nani Roma, his colleagues in the official team. A closer look at the rankings reveals that no other constructor has achieved such a strong showing overall since 2007, when, on the opening stage in Lisbon, the feat was achieved by Volkswagen.
