P1racenews AI automatic summary:
The 27km long Dakar prologue saw the first running in anger today (Friday), as teams set about securing their starting
Many crews were holding back their true potential before the rally officially started on Saturday. Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist dominated the prologue in their Audi e-tron, finishing 23 seconds ahead of Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz in their Toyota Gazoo Racing T1+. Sebastian Loeb and Fabian Lurquin came in third in their Prodrive Hunters, just 15 seconds behind the leaders. Following closely behind in fourth place were Marcus Baumgart and Kleber Cincea, who tied with Loeb’s time. Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy had a setback, getting lost and starting stage one from 69th position. In the bikes category, Tosha Schareina on a Monster Energy Honda claimed victory, while stage one will take competitors on a 544km journey from AlUla to Al Henakiyah, featuring a racing route of 414km consisting of various terrain types, including dirt track, sand, and stoned track.
