January 12, 2016 – Carlos Sainz has won a shortened ninth special stage in the Dakar Rally today, moving into the overall lead.
Sainz finished the stage, which was shortened due to extreme heat, with a time of 2h35m31s, 2 minutes quicker than Nasser Al-Attiyah who ended up fifth fastest of the day, behind the Toyota of Giniel de Villiers. The reigning champion remains third in the standings, some 14 minutes off the lead.
Stephane Peterhansel, slowed down by punctures, finished the day nearly nine minutes behind Sainz, who now leads the rally by seven minutes over the Frenchman. Although Peterhansel was cleared of illegal refueling, the X-Raid MINI team have appealed the decision and will be taking their case to court.
Sebastien Loeb finished the stage down in 18th place, over an hour behind Sainz.
Overall standings after Stage 9:
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Car | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 303 | Carlos Sainz | Peugeot | 28h39m24s |
| 2 | 302 | Stephane Peterhansel | Peugeot | 7m03s |
| 3 | 300 | Nasser Al-Attiyah | Mini | 14m38s |
| 4 | 315 | Mikko Hirvonen | Mini | 34m50s |
| 5 | 301 | Giniel de Villiers | Toyota | 53m18s |
| 6 | 305 | Yazeed Al-Rajhi | Toyota | 1h01m48s |
| 7 | 319 | Leeroy Poulter | Toyota | 1h03m25s |
| 8 | 306 | Erik van Loon | Mini | 1h28m05s |
| 9 | 304 | Nani Roma | Mini | 1h42m55s |
| 10 | 321 | Cyril Despres | Peugeot | 1h51m30s |
