Vatanen: ‘A beer please!’

Only Finland's Ari Vatanen can spend two days and a night stranded in the Mauritanian desert and come out smiling. The Nissan driver finally completed Thursday's gruelling 660km stage from Zouerat to Tichit, arriving late on Friday after two days of mechanical failures, emotion and solidarity.

After taking two days and a night to complete the Zouerat-Tichit stage, Ari Vatanen and Tiziano Siviero arrived at Tichit on Friday evening, accompanied by two guardian angels: the nr 529 and 504 trucks. Ari told us of his adventures:

"It all started when we lost the brakes, and then, when night was falling, the transmission broke. We had to spend the night there, but at least this time, I had taken a tent with me... We were exhausted. In the morning, we met some fantastic people - two trucks, who took it in turns to tow us.

"First of all, it was to see if we could be towed, meaning just a few metres. But then they said - Ari! Don' t worry, we' ll take you to Tichit. Unfortunately, both trucks run out of fuel. Some Mauritanian solders came to help us out."

"But the most incredible part was that it was the same soldiers who helped us last year, when Colin and I were stuck in the desert for three days. They recognised me, and fell on me, hugging me. It was a great moment. You really meet some wonderful people, like the drivers of these two trucks, who did not hesitate to help us. What a great spirit of solidarity.

"They helped us, when they really did not have to. I think that is shows real commitment to react as they did. I would like to thank them with all my heart."

"After arriving in Tichit, where we stopped briefly to eat something, we got going again for Tidjikja. We arrived at around 3:00 in the morning. This morning, we got going again. Just 5 km from the start, we had a puncture. Then we got stuck in the sand twice in the first dunes. I' m exhausted. I don' t know if it is sunrise or sunset. My back is a mess..."

However, when a doctor came over to see how Ari was, as his back is hurting him really badly, and to find out if he wanted anything, the Finn simply replied: "A beer!"