Stage 3 of the Fenix Rally was one to forget if you’re driving a truck.

Sunday’s action, split into three parts, took place in the dunes and alternated between fast and slow sections. Besides some very tall dunes, much of the day was run in exceptionally hot temperatures that put a strain on racers and their equipment. Magdalena Zając recalled she and navigator Błażej Czekan had to break out the shovels on occasion because their Hilux got stuck.

In the case of the trucks, it might’ve been too much. Of the the six trucks entered, Gerrit Zuurmond and Paolo Calabria were the only ones to finish the stage.

Even though he was officially the class runner-up for Sunday, Calabria finished four hours and 42 minutes behind Zuurmond. His MAN 12.800 prototype got stuck in the sand after the left front axle broke, leaving him standed until Philippe Roman’s Unimog arrived to help. Not far away from the scene, Tom Heuer’s Tatra 815 was beached and could not be pulled out even with a traction board.

Mike Panhuijzen did not start the leg, meaning only five trucks took the start.

As the trucks lagged along, things weren’t any easier for the other classes. Gaëtan Martinez, out of contention for the Quad overall after his engine issues on Saturday that necessitated a replacement, beat Antanas Kanopkinas for the stage win by 2:30. Even then, the new motor acted up as well shortly after crossing the finish because the fuel quality had degraded the unit (a similar fate to the original).

“After the first loop of about 170 kilometers, I was really exhausted and honestly didn’t want to start the second one,” Kanopkinas admitted. “If there had been an option to stop there, I would have. But I drank some water, ate, rested for a few minutes, and recovered. It was extremely hot, so I kept pouring water over myself, and that gave me a big energy boost and motivation.

“I rode really fast for the next 80 kilometers, and for the rest, I switched to survival mode.”

Stage 3 winners

Class	Number	Competitor	Team	Total Time
Car Open	229	Agostino Rizzardi	CountrysideWays	4:57:41.71
Car Limited	221	Abdul el Karim Ben Hassan	Tunis Automobile Club	6:22:55.76
SSV	432	Paolo Scalzotto	RZR Racing	4:10:11.39
Truck	507	Gerrit Zuurmond	Rainbow Truck Team	6:30:35.59
Enduro	16	Dương Nguyễn-Khoa	France Road Book	4:51:56.80
ATV	17	Gaëtan Martinez	CFMOTO Thunder Racing Team	5:32:30.52
Discovery	N/A	No Finishers	N/A	DNS

Featured image credit: RBI Media