The Dakar caravan arrived at the Bivouac in Tucumán, north of Argentina, after a long day and an 800- kilometre drive. The four IVECO crews remain in close contention for the race, with the two Powerstars in the Top 10.
The trucks arrived at the finish line covered in mud and dust, and the drivers told the press about the particularly tough conditions in several parts of the route due to flying dust in the early part of the race while later they had to contend with a lot of surface water on the roads. The mud and high speeds –over 100 km/h - were the main hazards in this special.
With two fifth places in the first two days of racing, Gerard de Rooy's IVECO is now fourth in the overall classification, with more than three hours in the bag. He finished the second stage 3m03s behind Martin van der Brink, winner of the day and first in the overall classification. Today De Rooy was only 11 seconds away from the podium.
The Iveco Trakkers remained a bit behind in the second stage. Ton van Genugten, the Dutchman who won IVECO its first stage podium in this 2017 Dakar Rally in yesterday's race, suffered a puncture and finished 13m01s behind the winner, falling from 2nd place to 16th in the classification.
Wuf van Ginkel climbed several positions today, recovering from the 42nd position of his first day to finish 26th, which puts him in 28th in the overall classification.
Federico Villagra, the argentine driver who finished third in the last Dakar, arrived sixth, two seconds behind De Rooy. Villagra moved up two places, from 9th to 7th, in the overall classification.
Both Powerstars are looking to be consistent in the stages, which will take them to climb positions towards the pódium.
The Dakar Rally will continue on its way to the north of Argentina and for the first time this year it will climb over the 4,000 metres above sea level. The Truck category will have a special stage 146 kilometres long and another 416 kilometres of liasion to arrive in San Salvador de Jujuy.
Stage 2 Results – Dakar 2017
1. Martin van den Brink (Renault) 2h37m08s
2. Dmitry Sotnikov (Kamaz) + 2m03s
3. Peter Versluis (MAN) + 2m52s
4. Siarhei Viazovich (Maz) + 2m55s
5. Gerard de Rooy (IVECO) + 3m03s
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6. Federico Villagra (IVECO) + 3m06s
16. Ton van Genugten (IVECO) + 13m01s
26. Wuf van Ginkel (IVECO) + 26m02s
Overall Classification – Dakar 2017
1. Martin van den Brink (Renault) 3h07m33s
2. Dmitry Sotnikov (Kamaz) + 3m09s
3. Martin Kolomy (Tatra) + 3m11s
4. Gerard de Rooy (IVECO) + 3m20s
5. Peter Versluis (MAN) + 3m29s
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7. Federico Villagra (IVECO) + 4m06s
16. Ton van Genugten (IVECO) + 12m49s
28. Wuf van Ginkel (IVECO) + 45m39s
Follow all the news at www.iveco.com/dakar
IVECO will keep its fans up to date throughout the rally on www.iveco.com/dakar, following the race step by step with daily updates from South America. The website narrates a journey through the world's most difficult and demanding off-road race. The website, published in English and Spanish, will be updated every day with Team PETRONAS De Rooy IVECO's results and performance data, plus multimedia content transmitted directly from the course itself. Likewise, the IVECO's social media channels will be updated every day, with all the latest news as well as reports, videos and photos.
