Peterhansel closes gap with stage six victory

Stephane Peterhansel closed the gap on second place to less than three minutes as he led home a Mini top three on a tragedy-hit Friday. The 11-time Dakar Rally champion, along with co-pilot Jean-Paul Cottret, crossed the line in first place at the end of stage six, which saw competitors travel from Tucuman to Salta, posting a time of two hours, 42 minutes and 58 seconds. The French pairing were followed over the finish line line two minutes and 43 seconds later by fellow Mini duo Nasser Al-Attiyah and Lucas Cruz, who are now fifth in the overall standings. Completing Mini's dominance of the podium was Orlando Terranova - competing on home soil in Argentina - and co-pilot Paulo Fuiza, whose time of two hours, 48 minutes and 18 seconds was enough to marginally close the gap on overall leaders Nani Roma and Michel Perin by 76 seconds. The day was marred by Belgian rider Eric Palante's death in the motorcycling event, with race organisers confirming the circumstances over the 50-year-old's tragic passing are under investigation. Roma and Perin were left disappointed by their day's work, coming home just over six and a half minutes behind the winners, while Carlos Sainz and Timo Gottschalk, who led the overall standings at the end of stage four, came in fifth, six minutes and 31 seconds off the pace. Fourth place went to Toyota's Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz, whose consistent performances see them occupy fourth overall.