Communique 17 - Wadi Rayan, Egypt
Saturday 22 January 2000
Leg 16 Dakhla (Egypt) - Wadi Rayan (Egypt)
Total distance: 722km - Special Stage: 416km

Masuoka Takes First Stage Win for Mitsubishi On Dakar 2000

Japanese driver Hiroshi Masuoka took his first stage victory on this year’s Paris-Dakar-Cairo Rally when he powered his way across sand dunes and rocky passes to the bivouac at Wadi Rayan, Egypt, in his Team Nisseki Mitsubishi Ralliart Pajero/Montero. Co-driven by German Andreas Schulz, the Mitsubishi driver looks set to finish in sixth place with only one short stage remaining before the finish in Cairo tomorrow, January 23.

The highest placed Mitsubishi Pajero/Montero overall after the penultimate 416km stage is in third place, crewed by Frenchmen Jean-Pierre Fontenay and Gilles Picard, who enjoyed another good day on a more technical route which had twisty, rocky and sandy sections to test the real performance of the car and driver. For much of the event, it’s simply been flat-out straight line drag racing for hundreds of kilometres at a time, which allowed the buggy of Jean-Louis Schlesser to break into the lead just after the restart in Libya.

Said Fontenay’s co-driver Picard: "It was a good stage today. Twisty, fast, rocky in places - the real spirit of the Dakar. Jean-Pierre was having fun and so was I".

Stage winner Masuoka added: "I knew we had done well. The car is fantastic in these conditions. Yesterday and today were good stages - perfect - good driving, navigation, and suited the car. It was not like the motorway driving we were doing before. It’s nice to take a stage win and take a good result into the future. I shall be trying for better next year".

All-girl crew Jutta Kleinschmidt of Germany and Tina Thorner had been chasing Masuoka today in their similar Team Mitsubishi Germany Pajero/Montero but picked up two punctures. However, the girls should finish in Cairo in the current fifth position, as Jutta explained: "We decided to take a risk and go for a stage win because our position is safe. But Hiroshi had no punctures and we had two, and that’s how it goes".

With the rally almost over after today, which featured the last of the long special stages, Schlesser is almost certain to take victory in his buggy with fellow Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel in second in his Mitsubishi-powered Mega Desert, and Fontenay third in the Pajero/Montero. However, in the T1 category for standard cars, Brazilian Klever Kolberg made excellent progress today in his Mitsubishi Pajero/Montero and is currently in second place.

Tomorrow sees the final, short stage of this year’s epic Paris-Dakar-Cairo Rally with only a 10 km "spectator special" which finishes at the foot of the Pyramids in Cairo where Jean-Michel Jarre will celebrate the finish with a special live concert.

POSITIONS ON STAGE 16

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION AFTER LEG 16