Great Day for Gordon; End of Rally for Nasser
Iquique, Chile (January 10, 2012) - Robby Gordon and the No. 303 SPEED Energy/Toyo Tires HUMMER dominated Stage 9 of the 2012 Dakar Rally, winning by 1 minute and 38 seconds over Stephane Peterhansel. Gordon, with the help of his navigator Johnny Campbell, lead the entire stage with 3 MINIs breathing down their necks.
Unfortunately, Nasser Al-Attiyah's day would end completely different. Al-Attiyah encountered the same issue today as he did yesterday when a serpentine belt popped off, not once but three times. Using all of his spares, Al-Attiyah was stranded near KM 200 of the 556 km stage. Being more than an hour down to the overall leader, Al-Attiyah made the tough decision to end his efforts for a repeat championship and dropped out of the stage.
To have the No. 300 Qatar HUMMER withdraw from the race is a huge disappointment, but Team SPEED knows what an accomplishment it is to win two stages and overcome the adversity the team faced during the first half of the rally.
For Gordon and Campbell, the race to become the first Americans to win Dakar lives on. Winning Stage 9 win marks Gordon's 5th special stage victory during a Dakar Rally. Gordon is now only 5 minutes and 58 seconds behind overall leader Stephane Peterhansel with only five stages remaining.
Late after his stage win Gordon commented on how his team have prepared a winning car, "These guys just didn't go to sleep after last years disappointment - they went to work. My guys have flat killed it. They have worked really hard and it's a tough battle. I'm lucky to have a great, great group of guys that are dedicated from the heart - they bleed orange and we're going to have some fun trying to win this rally. I'm sad to see Nasser go but if he doesn't want to drive the car then so be it. It just gives me more support more equipment and three more mechanics to go after this thing."
Team SPEED will work through the night to prepare the No. 303 SPEED Energy/Toyo Tires HUMMER for Stage 10 of the rally, which will take the competitors from Iquique to Arica.
About SPEED Energy-- SPEED Energy is available in four flavors: Unleaded, Fuel, Ethanol and Octane, which provides the human machine with the fuel it needs to keep up with the SPEED of life. Each drink contains a potent energy blend of B-vitamins, caffeine, taurine and ginseng. SPEED is packaged in 12 ounce sleek cans that have a stylish black top and sexy body and are available in singles, four-packs, and cases. SPEED Energy is available in the United States in major retailers, convenience stores, grocery stores, bars and nightclubs. For more information, please visit speedenergy.com.
Race Coverage-- Follow Team SPEED during the 2012 Dakar Rally on www.speedenergy.com as well as twitter and facebook at speed_energy and thespeedenergydrink. Daily highlights from each stage can be viewed on the NBC Sports Network (formerly known as Versus) January 1st -- the 15th at 1:30AM Eastern Standard time. Please check your local listings on where to find the NBC Sports Network.
The SPEED Energy APP - featuring exclusive updates of Robby Gordon and his SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires HUMMER during the 2012 Dakar Rally. Follow Robby as he competes in the world's toughest race through Argentina, Chile and Peru. Be the first to hear updates from the driver himself and get exclusive videos and photos during the team's quest to win the coveted Dakar Rally. You'll be able to keep up with Robby during the rally from your iPhone or iPad!