After the only rest day, the caution of car front-runner Lategan and motorbike pace-setter Sanders allowed their closest pursuers to catch up by up to four minutes on the sixth stage from Ha’il south to Al Duwadimi. South African driver Lategan was seventh on the stage, 6 1/2 minutes behind Belgian winner Guillaume de Mévius.

Henk Lategan's overall Dakar Rally lead was cut to seven minutes and 16 seconds as Yazeed Al-Rajhi closed the gap to the South African despite issues with his car, while Mini's Guillaume de Mevius and Joao Ferreira were the first two to finish stage six in Saudi Arabia.

Five-time champion Nasser Al-Attiyah has been stripped of a smashing stage win in the Dakar Rally because of a missing spare wheel in the Saudi desert.

Nineteen-year-old Saood Variawa of South Africa became the youngest top-class driver to win a stage in the Dakar Rally

American driver Seth Quintero was promoted to first place on the opening stage of the Dakar Rally after helping a crashed rival on Saturday.

Saudi Arabian Yazeed al-Rajhi won Wednesday's fourth stage of the Dakar Rally, in which five-time winner Nasser al-Attiyah dropped to seventh overall. The special stages between Al Henakiyah and Al Ula in Saudi Arabia included 415km of racing.