Nasser Al-Attiyah deals hefty blow to Ford in monstrous Dakar stage

The Dakar Rally participants were warned in advance that the 10th stage - the second part of the marathon - could be decisive. 

Huge dunes were scheduled along the way, and it soon became apparent how tough the course was. Eryk Goczal led the car race after his victory on Tuesday, but found himself completely stuck in the sand in the opening phase, losing a significant amount of time as a result.

Many eyes, of course, were also on the battle for the overall victory. Nani Roma was the new leader, but his lead over Carlos Sainz and Nasser Al-Attiyah was only a mere minute. 

Roma and Sainz became the big losers for Ford, losing 20 and 30 minutes respectively between kilometres 155 and 196. That is where the difference was made.

Five-time Dakar winner Al-Attiyah impressed by surviving the dunes flawlessly. The Qatarean occupied second place all day behind the unapproachable Mathieu Serradori and dealt a hefty blow to Ford.

He retook the lead, while Roma and Sainz dropped to third and sixth. 

Henk Lategan (Toyota) took advantage of Ford's problems. He finished in fifth place and is now second in the standings, 12 minutes behind Al-Attiyah.

Sebastien Loeb, Al-Attiyah's team-mate, moved up to fourth place with three stages to go.

View the general classification below!