There was drama on day one of the 2018 Silk Way Rally. Nani Roma had to retire ill, while the wonderful sounding Toyota Hilux of Nasser Al Attiyah was victorious over the stage for the cars. In the truck class, Dmitry Sotnikov continued on his way to win the stage and save Kamaz’s honour.

The Silk Way Rally is back. Astrakhan plays host to an intense week of cross country action on the way to Red Square in Moscow. Competitors from around the world have been preparing their teams and vehicles for 3,500kms of what is commonly considered one of the toughest tests in the world.

The 2018 Silk Way Rally is poised to be one of the most competitive ever. The race comprises 2,500 kilometres of special stages over seven days.

Title rival Lewis Hamilton is in fourth position

More than 1,300 classic cars are racing, being displayed and being sold in Verona along with spare parts, accessories and components.

Five stages remain in the event which started in Lima, Peru, and ends in Argentine city of Cordoba on January 20.

KTM rider Sam Sunderland was airlifted to hospital with a back injury, paving the way for Yamaha rider Adrien Van Beveren to take the stage and the top spot overall.

Briton's Lewis Hamilton has gained his seventieth pole position in Formula One, driving for Mercedes in Malaysia.

Italian MotoGP great Valentino Rossi has broken his right leg in a training accident and will undergo surgery as soon as possible, his Yamaha team

The Briton's fifth success in 12 races this season, and 58th of his career, came a day after he equalled Michael Schumacher's all-time record of 68 pole positions.

Toyota is reportedly working on an electric car powered by a new type of battery that significantly increases driving range and reduces charging time to just a few minutes

The story of this year's Silk Way Rally was one of two dominant teams: Peugeot and Kamaz

The end of the Silk Way Rally ended with a cancellation followed by party.

In this penultimate stage of the 2017 Silk Way Rally, Cyril Despres closed in on his second straight overall victory in the cars, while Dmitry Sotnikov resisted his Kamaz teammate Anton Shibalov in th