Price, Sanders draw first blood in Dakar 2023 Prologue

Two-time Dakar Rally winner Toby Price has kicked off his 2023 campaign in the best shape possible, taking out the Prologue ahead of fellow Australian Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders by the slimmest of margins.

Australian Toby Price has set the pace in the Prologue for the 2023 Dakar Rally. Image: ASO

Sanders set the early pace during the 13-kilometre Sea Camp stage, clocking in 8'23" aboard his GasGas RX 450F.

The next seven riders that followed Sanders couldn’t get close to the Australian, and for a while it looked like Sanders was in the box seat, until Gold Coast-based Price answered Chucky’s challenge.

The KTM factory rider set the fastest time of 8'22", shaving one second off Sanders’ best time. Ultimately, it was a time no one could eclipse.

Such was the pace set by the Australian pair, the nearest riders to be within reach were Botswana’s Ross Branch (Hero Motorsport Team Rally), Spain’s Joan Barreda Bort (Monster Energy JB Team) and Argentina’s Kevin Benavides (Red Bull KTM Factory Team), who all finished a further nine seconds adrift of Price at the completion of the Prologue.

Last year’s champion, Sam Sunderland, finished the Prologue 13 seconds adrift of Price.

Price’s win gives him first pick on what order he will begin the opening stage of the 2023 rally tomorrow, with the top 10 finishes in the Prologue choosing what starting position they’ll run with.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Molly Taylor endured a slightly troubling start to her second attack on Dakar in the T4 Modified Production SSV class.

The Australian Can-Am Factory South Racing pilot and American navigator Andrew Short had encountered a few gremlins that hampered their Prologue run, finishing the stage in 17th overall, 31" behind eventual stage winners, Red Bull Can-Am’s Rokas Baciuska and Oriol Vidal Montijano.

In the Car component, Audi’s Mattias Ekstrom upstaged nine-time World Rally champion Sebastian Loeb in almost identical fashion to Price by shaving a complete second off the Frenchman’s time and completing the course in eight minutes to take out the Prologue.

Audi's Mattias Ekstrom, with his co-driver Emil Bergkvist of Sweden won the prologue for cars ahead of Sebastien Loeb and Belgian co-driver Fabian Lurquin. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) Source: AFP / FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images

The 2016 World Rallycross champion from Sweden was the last of the three-car Audi assault to tackle the 13km course, easily eclipsing fellow teammates Carlos Sainz Snr and Stephane Peterhansel on his way to the stage win.

Last year’s winner, Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Nasser Al-Attiyah could do no better than fourth in the stage, as he attempts to defend his 2022 win.

The first stage of the 2023 Dakar Rally commences tomorrow morning (AEDT) with a 367km loop starting and finishing at Sea Camp, where competitors will face stretches of sandy tracks interspersed with some stony sections and gravel.

SBS and SBS On Demand will air extended highlights of every stage of the Dakar Rally, with coverage commencing on January 2.