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 | SA-Dakar Rally: Toyota "Dream continues", Glyn Hall "team had great day".
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The the new, cooperated "multi-culti" Toyota Teams "the dream continues". With four days of racing behind them, the Imperial Toyota Hilux's continue to impress. All four cars ran beautifully, finishing 2nd (Terranova), 3rd (De Villiers), 8th (Vos) and 12th (Alvarez).
This result moves Giniel up to 2nd place overall, Alvarez to 9th, Vos to 12th while Terranova has made it back up to 18th. Duncan Vos, in particular, had a great run and he is looking more and more like the multiple SA Champion that he is.
For these four vehicles to be running in the top twenty at this stage, is an amazing achievement and cautious whispers are starting to wonder "What of these cars can do the business?"
"I did not sleep at all well last night and did not feel at my best when we got to the start" said Giniel de Villiers. "That's when you take it easy, keep the car on the road and play it safe."
Teamchef Glyn Hall was also happy: "The team had a great day. All four Hilux finished well up the order. Terranova had his best day, 2nd! Giniel de Villiers 3rd, this places him 2nd overall behind Stéphane Peterhansel."
"Duncan Vos 8th despite dust, he now will start with top group and 3 minutes dust gap - 12th overall."
"The Team was working well, it was 41 Celcius degrees at midnight last night. Very hot to work and then sleep. Tomorrow may be the hardest stage and it may only be 160 kms long" he reported via SMS.
"It is hard to believe that after all that has happened, it is still early days, but it is. There is a lot of racing left and it would be foolish to get one's hopes up just yet, but so far so very good" the Team reported.
Today's route contains the last great unknown in terms of race performance, soft sand - also known as fech-fech. The Toyota Hilux cars have excelled beyond any reasonable expectation on every day so far and by tomorrow night, when the teams dock in Fiambala, we'll know how well they can be expected to do in the sand.
2012/01/05 | 16:27 CET | ARTICLE: MR/SY/FORTUNE/MOTORPICS
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