Astana Motors is 3rd in their class in Dakar total score

ASTANA. KAZINFORM - The team of Astana Motorsports has covered the distance of the 5th stage of the Dakar from Tupic to Oruro in Bolivia. The car crew led by Denis Berezovskiy has preserved the 3rd place in the class. The truck crew with the driver Artur Ardavichus have come back to TOP-10.    

The distance of the fifth stage was 700 km. Oxygen deficit and tiredness started to take its toll. Besides, the organizers decided to reduce the stage due to the weather conditions. The region was hit by rains which turned the second part of the selective section into thick mud. The way to the bivouac was an ordeal - soft soil and water turned the station of the race caravan into mud park. The road to the canteen appeared knee-deep mud with temperature about zero which went below zero at night.

"We started at 4,000 m. Mountain, narrow slippery roads. On one side is a lin. At the finish of the first section we learnt the stage was reduced. The decision was made in the right time. The driving conditions were tough", Denis Berezovskiy, the pilot of the car crew, commented.

The team are happy with the vehicle. The mechanics solved the problems. Denis Berezovskiy and navigator Alexey Nikizhev finished 39th in the stage, and ranked 31^st in the overall tournament score. In its class Т2 production the racers preserved the third place.

MAN TGS pilot Artur Ardavichus, navigator Serge Brynkens and mechanic Michael Huisman were the last in the top ten in the fifth stage. In the total tournament score they ranked 33^rd having moved 4 lines up in the score table.