Peterhansel awarded stage 10 win after crash stop
January 12, 2017After a tricky start, Sebastien Loeb finished Thursday's race stage two minutes and 33 seconds ahead of teammate Cyril Despres and nearly seven minutes ahead of Peterhansel, who stopped to assist motorbike rider Simon Marcic after colliding with the Slovenian.
The accident occurred 83 kilometers (52 miles) into the special stage from Chilecito to San Juan in Argentina, leaving Marcic with an open left leg fracture.
But several hours after the finish, race organizers announced that Peterhansel had benefitted from a rule that allowed him to claim lost time for the stoppage. The ruling took the 2016 champion from six minutes and 45 seconds behind Loeb to seven minutes and 28 seconds in front and put him in the overall lead.
In what now looks to be a two horse race, Loeb started one minute and 38 seconds clear of Peterhansel in the overall standings but is now five minutes and 50 seconds behind with just two stages remaining
Stage 10 was Peugeot's third podium clean sweep and the three drivers who dominated on Thursday are the same three who look set to finish in the top three places overall. Despres, in third, is almost an hour clear of Toyota's Nani Roma.
mp/pfd (AFP/SID)