Dakar Rally: Britain's McRae wins third stage

Britain's Colin McRae won on Sunday the third stage of Dakar Rally to snatch the overall lead in his Nissan as the competitors headed for Rabat in Morocco to begin the first African stage.

McRae won the car race, clocking 7:48, ahead of Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel by six seconds and Ari Vatanen of Finland by 10 seconds.

McRae, recording a third stage victory after two wins in 2004, leads the rally overall for the first time in his career.

Participants of 39 nationalities are taking part in this 27th edition that will cover 8956km between Barcelona and Dakar, including 5431km of competitive special stages.