DAKAR, 16 January 2005 — Stephane Peterhansel and Cyril Despres successfully negotiated the last major stage of the Dakar Rally yesterday to be almost certain of retaining their titles in the car and motorcycle races respectively.

Peterhansel, starting the day with a substantial cushion of almost half an hour, cruised from Tambacounda to Dakar to finish fifth in the 15th stage won by South African Giniel de Villiers.

The Frenchman won last year’s car race after claiming the motorbike title six times. He now has a lead of 27 minutes and 13 seconds over compatriot and fellow Mitsubishi driver Luc Alphand with only a short stage today to go.

“I’m very tired but happy to be here because we’ve done nearly 8,000 km and when you arrive here by the sea in Dakar, it’s a real pleasure,” Peterhansel said after rolling over the line at a luxury hotel in the Senegalese capital.

“I’m just a little nervous now because the race is not finished,” he said. “Everything can happen tomorrow morning on the small stage so we are confident but it’s not finished.”

After a tough race marked by the death of two motorbike riders, competitors were reunited with family and friends in Dakar and welcomed with a display of traditional African dancing and drumming.

However, Despres said he could not truly savor the moment after the death of KTM teammate Fabrizio Meoni during the race. The Italian, twice winner of the rally, died of a heart attack following a crash in Mauritania on Tuesday.

Spanish rider Jose Manuel Perez died on Monday after falling during the seventh stage on Jan. 6.

French rider Despres said he was also deeply affected by the death of compatriot and teammate Richard Sainct, a three-time Dakar winner killed in the Pharaohs Rally in Egypt in September.

“In a few months, I have lost two friends who taught me how to ride, how to navigate, how to do what I do today,” he said.

“Today I don’t want to be sad but maybe I am. I’d like to be happy but I’m not really,” a subdued Despres told reporters after winning the stage by 1:24.

He leads the standings by 9:45, despite collecting a nine-minute penalty on Friday evening for speeding.

Today’s 68-km stage consists of a race around the picturesque Lac Rose, a lake just north of Dakar, but only a 31 km special section counts toward the competitors’ final times.