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Porsche s 959 was victorious in the 1986 Paris-Dakar Rally. Porsche
The 2021 Dakar Rally wrapped up on January 15, after 14 days and 7646 kilometers (4751 miles) traversing the unforgiving desert terrain of Saudi Arabia. Fifty-five-year-old Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel, the most successful competitor in Dakar’s history, won his eighth title in the car class (he also won the bike class six times in the 1990s), and Argentinian Kevin Benavides became the first South American rider to win the two-wheeled category. Russian Dmitry Sotnikov won the truck class. French rider Pierre Cherpin died from injuries sustained on the event’s 7th stage.
This was only the Dakar’s second running on the Arabian peninsula, but it was the 43rd iteration of the world-famous rally. The raid has gone through three continents over the decades, but its reputation for toughness and danger has never wavered. This year also marks 35 years since the 1986 running of the event, a year which gav