Gerard De Rooy wins his third stage podium

The Iveco Powerstar of Dutchman Gerard de Rooy finished Stage 8 of the 2015 Dakar in the second place, thus winning his third spot on the podium in a special stage.

De Rooy finished 11m16s behind the winner Nikolaev, while Hans Stacey closed another day at the wheel of his Iveco Powerstar 49m43s from the lead.

The Trucks category returned to the Iquique campsite for tomorrow’s day off in the current Dakar edition. After a stage full of obstacles and major difficulties, Eduard Nikolaev’s Kamaz won over Gerard de Rooy’s Iveco Powerstar, which fought for the lead throughout the day.

The partial results remained quite steady throughout the competition, but the very last stretch of sand and an impressive descent from 1,100 meters a.s.l. delivered some surprises on the part of some competitors and delays on the part of others.

Gerard de Rooy completed a great partial stage winning a second position, 11m16s away from the section winner, Eduard Nikolaev. The Iveco Powerstar provided De Rooy with great stability in the very last stretch, which enabled him to win a second place on the podium.

Hans Stacey, on the other hand, continues as the best-positioned Iveco pilot in the 2015 Dakar. At the wheel of an Iveco Powerstar, the Dutch pilot lost considerable time in the last WP, finishing 7th 49m43s behind the leader and falling behind by almost half an hour within a few kilometers. However, due to the delay experienced by the 6th position holder, now Hans Stacey has climbed up one place and is ready to fight for a spot in the Top 5.

Pep Vila had a puncture and got stuck in a dune. The experienced Spanish pilot himself, who had an excellent stage yesterday, said that his Iveco Trakker Evolution II is in perfect conditions and that today’s performance was only due to a rough patch. Despite such mishaps, Pep was stronger than his competitors and went up from the 13th to the 10th position in the general ranking, a target he had set for himself before the start of the 2015 Dakar.

Tomorrow Trucks will have a well-deserved day off after eight grueling stages, which have taken their toll on several pilots and teams.