DAKAR Rally heroes Carlos Sainz and Stephane Peterhansel of Bahrain JCW X-Raid team were accorded a rousing welcome yesterday at the Bahrain City Centre.
The 57-year-old Sainz, with co-driver Lucas Cruz, steered the Bahrain X-Raid team to victory in the 2020 Dakar Rally in Riyadh on Friday.
It was Sainz’s third Dakar triumph.
X-raid in the first self-developed and constructed Mini John Cooper Works and Mini John Cooper Works Buggy.
Peterhansel and his co-driver Paulo Fiúza, driving the second X-Raid car, finished third to make it a double delight.
Sainz and Cruz interacted with fans at Bahrain City Centre and posed for pictures.
“We started winning this Dakar on day one and we have gone flat out from the beginning,” said Sainz, who was hailed by his son, Carlos Sainz junior who drives for McLaren in Formula One, on Twitter as a legend.