The 33rd edition of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is approaching its final stage, and Nasser Al Attiyah from the Nasser Racing by Prodrive team has taken the lead in the car category, surpassing Seth Quintero and Yazeed Al Rajhi of Overdrive Racing. The competition has been characterized by constant changes in the leadership positions and unexpected challenges for the drivers.
In the Challenger category, Can-Am Factory drivers Austin Jones and Rokas Baciuska maintain their dominant position in the overall standings. On the other hand, Yasir Seaidan from MMP continues to be the most outstanding competitor in the SSV category.
Al Attiyah has shown exceptional driving, reclaiming his leadership position and surpassing Quintero, who started the day with a 1'10" lead. Al Attiyah finished the stage with a significant advantage of 10'31" over Quintero, who now occupies the second place in the overall standings. The day also witnessed the withdrawal of Guerlain Chicherit after an incident in the dunes. His co-driver, Alex Winocq, was evacuated as a precaution due to lower back pain. Al Rajhi finished the stage in second place but remains in third place in the overall standings.
The competition will conclude tomorrow with the fifth stage, "Abu Dhabi Aviation", featuring a total route of 423 km, including a special section of 205 km.
| Pos. | Driver | Co-Driver | Team | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 | Stage 5 | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N. AL-ATTIYAH | E. BOULANGER | NASSER RACING PRODRIVE | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 14 |
| 2 | S. QUINTERO | D. ZENZ | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING TOYOTA | 0 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| 3 | Y. AL RAJHI | T. GOTTSCHALK | OVERDRIVE RACING TOYOTA | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 9 |
| 4 | A. JONES | O. MENA | CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM CAN-AM | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | R. BACIUSKA | O. VIDAL MONTIJANO | CAN-AM FACTORY TEAM CAN-AM | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | D. KROTOV | K. ZHILTSOV | OVERDRIVE RACING TOYOTA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | M. PROKOP | V. CHYTKA | ORLEN JIPOCAR TEAM FORD | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| 8 | G. CHICHERIT | A. WINOCQ | OVERDRIVE RACING PRODRIVE | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 9 | G. DE MEVIUS | X. PANSERI | OVERDRIVE RACING TOYOTA | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 10 | L. MORAES | A. MONLEON | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING TOYOTA | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
