Dakar Rally Yearbook edition 2023

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LE DAKAR 2023 SAUDI ARABIA

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PUBLISHED BY

CLASSIC AND NEW GO BEYOND PASSION

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5 DAKAR PRESS TEAM WWW. DAKARPRESS .COM 16 Classic Rock reaches Finish line 18 The story of Ithra 22 Sea Camp 28 Dakla Pack rookies Dave & Tessa 32 Prologue 42 Stage 1 50 Philippe Laury’s Porsche 54 Stage 2 61 Firemen Dakar Team meets Arnold 68 Stage 3 84 Stage 4 97 Performance of Team FJ 100 Stage 5 112 Stage 6 122 Definitely not a Puzzle ride 126 Restday 134 Stage 7 148 Stage 8 160 Stage 9 165 Ali Baba and the forty thieves 174 Stage 10 190 Stage 11 196 Rookie Anja van Loon 204 Stage 12 213 Ollie Roucková 216 Stage 13 220 Snagging Gearbox 227 Down-to-earth northerners 228 Future-Oriented 230 Stage 14 and Finish Classic Dakar 234 Finish podium Dammam 242 Pink cloud
LE DAKAR 2023 SAUDI ARABIA

DISCOVERING NEW AREAS

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SAUDI ARABIA

Dakar Rally Yearbook 2023 Edition

© 2023 Publisher: Car Content Factory

Dorp 94B 3415 PH Polsbroek

The Netherlands

Contact: Léon Jansen leon@dakarpress.com

16th edition

The moral right of authors and photographers to be identified as the artist and photographers of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Design and Patents Act of 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher of this book.

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LE DAKAR 2023
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EMPTY QUARTER

The 45th Dakar rally has started. The rally will be held in Saudi Arabia for the fourth consecutive year. Where in the previous editions a “tour of Saudi Arabia” was driven, Le Dakar 2023 goes from coast to coast. Since 2020, the mother of all rallies has been taking place in the Islamic Kingdom. Expectations about endless dunes are high, but in previous years this promise was not met.

After the rest day, the participants of both Le Dakar and the Classic Dakar will face the “Empty Quarter”. A part of the world where nothing lives, nobody comes, there are no roads or cities. Only sand with an awful lot of dunes. Will the participants enjoy themselves, or will they run into the man with the hammer? And, who’s afraid of the Empty Quarter?

No major landslides are to be expected in the car classification. It is very different with the truck classification. Due to the (idiotic) “special mission”, the Russians are forced to be absent. Will the Dutch truck participants capitalize on their chances?

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LEON JANSEN (NLD) DAKAR PRESS TEAM

VICTORY FOR NASSER AL-ATTIYAH &

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& MATHIEU BAUMEL

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DUTCH PRESS TEAM 2023 20TH ANNIVERSARY

For the Dakar Press Team it’s the 20th time that they report on Le Dakar. With this, the press team has visualized the rally in Africa, Latin America and Saudi Arabia. For Le Dakar 2023, the crew consists of team captain Léon Jansen (Dutch), Gerard Laurenssen

(Dutch), Andrew Eaton (Australian), Coen Schlüter (Dutch) and Ewout Batstra (Dutch).

After the rest day, Leon Schouten joins the team, who has navigated for Herman van Oldenmark in the Classic Dakar until then.

A nose landing with their Mitsubishi Pajero ends the rally adventure of this duo. From that moment on, Schouten has a welcome seat in the Volkswagen Amarok, which was specially used by the Dakar Press Team to report on the Classic Dakar Rally.

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CLASSIC ROCK REACHES FINISH LINE

Unlike most race teams, a press team does not have the option of bringing its own service truck, let alone a warehouse of spare parts. And we know from experience that something always gets broken because of the very rough conditions we have to work our way through. But which part breaks down is impossible to estimate in advance.

So it is particularly nice to have a service team from Dutch Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles with years of technical experience, thinking along with you and helping to find a solution!

To prevent major problems during the rally, the Amaroks of the Dakar Press Team are thoroughly serviced prior to embarkation, supported by numerous technical partners.

This year, for example, the engine of the Amarok 2.0 was replaced as a precautionary measure. This near-classic has already been used for no less than 11 Dakar rallies! Time, therefore, for a freshly beating heart under the bonnet.

During the rally, however, it turned out that when we wanted to start “the Classic Rock” in the

morning, the battery was flat. Measuring the electrical system showed that the cause was the alternator, which drew current from the battery when the car was stationary. As a result, jumper cables had to be used every time. Not a very convenient method if you have to trek into the desert every day to take photos.

With the cause identified, the press crew in the classic Dakar rally was able to continue on their way, all the way to the finish in Dammam.

A few days after discovering this fault, the Classic Rock drove through the dunes on its way out of the desert, however a serious jump over a sandy hill caused the left front shock absorber to leak. After extensive analysis and consultation with the PON-Muntstad support team, a good temporary solution was found and the Classic Rock was able to continue on its way.

The support from the Pon-organization and Volkswagen dealership Muntstad was crucial in both cases, enabling the “Classic Rock” to cross the finish line once again.

Thanks to the VW-Support Heroes!

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THE STORY OF ITHRA

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The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra), a Saudi Aramco initiative, is Saudi Arabia’s leading cultural and creative destination for talent development and crosscultural experiences.

Since opening in 2018, Ithra (meaning “enrichment” in Arabic) has been a window to global experiences, celebrating human potential and empowering creativity.

Ithra features a five-gallery museum, a 900seat theater, a 300-seat cinema, a worldclass library, a creativity and innovation lab, a conference/exhibition auditorium, Ithra Academy, the Energy Exhibit and the Kingdom’s first children’s museum.

It continuously presents inspiring performances, exhibitions, learning opportunities and events, envisioning a future in which Saudi Arabia is a beacon for knowledge and creativity. In 2022 alone, Ithra mounted over 8,000 programs and welcomed more than one million visitors.

Ithra is located at a poetic landmark, the Kingdom’s first commercially viable oil well, the Prosperity Well, symbolically marking that the Center was a gift to the Saudi people in celebration of Aramco’s 75th anniversary. As a catalyst for Saudi Arabia’s burgeoning creative and cultural industries, Ithra now represents a different source of energy: human energy.

The Ithra building, with its unique skin of 360 km of steel pipe, was the result of an international design competition won by the Norwegian architectural firm, Snøhetta. The award-winning building is a model for sustainability, having achieved “Gold” LEED status. In 2018, the Center was named one of the “100 greatest places in the world to visit” by TIME magazine.

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THE DAKAR’S BEAUTY LIES IN IT’S STUNNING HISTORY

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IT STARTS AT SEA CAMP

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THE ADVENTURE STARTS

No major landslides are to be expected in the car classification. Reigning champion Nasser Al-Attiyah returns to the start of Le Dakar 2023 with co-driver Mathieu Baumel.

Together with the brand new South African rally raid champion Giniel de Villiers and his codriver Dennis Murphy plus Henk Lategan with Brett Cummings, they represent Toyota Gazoo Racing in the trusted Hilux.

Le Dakar marks the start of the 2023 World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) season. AlAttiyah and Baumel once again driving the toughest cross-country races in the world and the duo will participate in all five rounds of the FIA W2RC.

The championship kicks off with the Dakar Rally, followed by the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge at the end of February, the Sonora Rally in Mexico in April, the Desafio Ruta 40 in Argentina at the end of August and finally the Morocco Rally, again scheduled for midOctober.

But before that happens, the participants’ vehicles will have to be approved for participation in the 45th edition of Le Dakar. This inspection takes place in the bivouac built for this occasion in Sea Camp.

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TECHNICAL CHECK

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DAKLA PACK ROOKIES DAVE & TESSA

Dave Klaassen sees boyhood dream come true with debut in Le Dakar.

During the rest day of Le Dakar 2022 in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, Dave Klaassen came to the bivouac with his girlfriend Tessa Rooth. Has the fire been kindled here for the desire to participate in the Dakar rally?

“Dakar is a kind of childhood dream for many men,” said the leader of Daklapack Rallysport. “As you get older, the urge fades. You become more realistic. In 2013 I started motorsport, but never had the urge to work towards “the Dakar”. It’s in the back of your mind, but it’s not a dot on the horizon. You have many rally sport competitions, but you only have one Dakar. And now my girlfriend and I are driving a Red-Lined 4x4, a monster of a car as a participant in Le Dakar! Can you believe it?

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FROM COAST TO COAST PROLOGUE

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BACK TO BASICS

For the 45th edition, organization ASO has specially realized an opening bivouac, located on the coast of the Red Sea. The teams stay here for four days. There is a relaxed atmosphere and it feels like the caravan has stepped back in time.

For the first time in years, all participants, mechanics, assistance, press, support and organization are together in one place at the start of the rally. Usually most of them spend the first part in luxury hotels, but in Sea Camp things are different.

Feel free to call it back to basic: sleeping in your two-second tent, fun and togetherness. Just like Dakar should be. Meanwhile, there is excitement among the participants in the truck classification, due to the absence of the invincible Kamaz Master and the MAZ team in the truck classification. This year, no unequal battle due to Russian force majeure. Expectations are particularly high among the Dutch and some even dare to dream of a trophy very secretly and certainly not out loud.

But perhaps even more important; overnight stays in tents: Dakar feels a bit like it used to be, like in the good old days. A delegation of familiar faces is at the start, but also introduces newbies, who provide surprises. At the same time, established names struggle with the capriciousness of this war of attrition. In short, this Dakar is a real one again, with new heroes.

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STAGE 1 SEA CAMP

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The excitement, emotion, and elation at starting the first stage of Le Dakar 2023 is palpable. The 368km loop from Sea Camp to Sea Camp, takes competitors through a mixed terrain of sand, rocks, desert plains, boulders and back along the coast.

But even before the first 100km is complete, disaster has already struck. Last year’s bike winner, Sam Sunderland crashes on a sandy section of the track and his race is finished, all in the blink of an eye. A broken shoulder blade puts Sam out and gives him a ride in the helicopter, leaving Ricky Brabec, Kevin Benavides and Toby Price to take first stage podium placings.

Three-time Dakar winner Carlos “El Matador” Sainz in one of three Audio E-tron’s powered through the tricky sections and a puncture to take line honours and his 42nd career special as his son, Carlos Sainz Junior watched his 60-year-old dad took stage honours.

It seems the first stages of this year’s Dakar in the T4 competition are being dominated by young guns. The youngest competitor ever in the history of the Dakar is 18 year-old Eryk Goczal who drove his first ever Dakar stage – and finished in P2! Eryk competes against his father and his uncle in the same category. Right behind him was another youngster, who has only just received his licence. Pau Navarro finished just 1-and-a-half minutes behind Goczal. Winner of Stage 1 was Rokas Baciuska however a 15-minute penalty dropped Bacuiska back to 9th and escalated Eryk and Pau to P1 and P2.

A favourite of our Aussie photographer is the Quads and today it was France’s Alexandre Giroud finishing in P1, just 21 seconds ahead of Argentinian Manuel Andujar. This category is set for a tough fight between these two competitors.

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PHILIPPE LAURY’S PORSCHE

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WHAT AN ADVENTURE

“Quelle aventure incroyable que ce Dakar Classic, au volant de la mythique Porsche 911 Rothmans! Il n’y a pas de mots pour décrire le plaisir ressenti au cours de ces trois semaines de course.

Un énorme merci à Mr Philippe Laury, d’avoir pensé à moi. Passionnés de rallyes, notre amitié est née sur le 205 Africa Raid des années plus tôt. Suite à un imprévu familial, cet homme de cœur n’a pas hésité une seconde à renoncer à cette grandiose aventure et m’a fait confiance, permettant ainsi à son ami et copilote Jean-Jo de rester dans la course.

Au volant de la Porsche, nous sommes venus à bout des 8 000 kms du Dakar, sans encombre, profitant de paysages exceptionnels, terrain de jeu hors du commun avec sable et dunes à perte de vue.

Ce fût un régal de piloter des heures durant cette voiture de légende au comportement irréprochable sur piste comme dans les dunes, du pur bonheur! Oubliant les chronos et la compétition, nous avons avant tout partagé de vrais moments d’amitié avec une bonne humeur de chaque instant.

Au terme de cette édition Dakar Rally Classic 2023, nous avons été accueilli sur le podium d’arrivée par Jacky Ickx luimême, vainqueur du Dakar au volant de cette même voiture en 1984.

Nous remercions vivement Pôle Sud shopping, Dépannage 70, Le 205 Africa Raid pour leur confiance et leur accompagnement sur cette épreuve ainsi que toute l’équipe, pour leur engagement, et toutes les personnes qui ont suivi notre aventure et surtout, à mon ami Philippe Laury.”

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Pilote : Philippe JACQUOT Co-pilote : Jean-Jo Bachelier Propriétaire de la Porsche Philippe Laury
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STAGE 2 SEA CAMP > ALULA

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ROCKS AND PUNCTURES

Heading inland from Sea Camp to Alula, competitors experienced a landscape of narrow rocky tracks, canyons and a mountain pass which tested everyone today, including the best of the best. Certainly not too many sand dunes out here, just a spectacular mountain back drop, at least for the morning’s competition.

Tyre punctures were aplenty, leaving some of the top drivers like Loeb and Peterhansel scratching their heads as their vehicles slowly made their way to bivouac without spares. The going got very slow for them. Some vehicles ran out of spares altogether and are forced to wait for assistance trucks which means much time is lost. Hopes for a Dakar win can fade very quickly.

As testing and tricky as the rocky, boulder strewn landscape may be, the terrain gave photographers something pleasantly different to capture. But we all know that the dunes and sand are coming.

For now though, the tantalising tinge of green is a refreshing contrast as we watch the rocks and damp dirt fly on the way to Alula.

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FIREMEN DAKAR TEAM

MEETS ARNOLD

Arnold Schwarzenegger?

For Le Dakar 2023, the Firemen Dakar team has opted for a new rally truck, which has been nicknamed Arnold. Almost all rally trucks are given a name. “You have to build a good relationship with the machine in order to deliver performance, but I really have no idea why this truck was named Arnold.” says Richard de Groot.

Perhaps it is a reference to the well-known powerhouse. The origin of the team lies with the Fire Department. 80 percent of the team members are active or ex- firefighters. They are therefore used to acting quickly, thoughtfully and rationally, with unconditional commitment. Features that certainly came in handy during this edition.

Washing machine!

Following Prologue, the next stage of the track is strewn with stones and boulders. The stage between Sea Camp and Alula is 430 km long, followed by 158 km of connecting route. Not only the stages themselves, but also the enormous distances that must be covered are an attack on equipment and participants.

This becomes all the more evident when the men in the Iveco in fire brigade colors drive into the bivouac. “Like we’ve been in a washing machine all day, just stones and stones!” The crew visibly needs recovery time.

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FEELING THE PRESSURE

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SEARCH FOR SAND LADDERS

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STAGE 3 ALULA > HA’IL

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HA’IL’S HIGHWAY TO HELL

The signs were already there, and fears become reality. What started as a good day ended early because of the bad weather. Small streams of water turn into huge torrents of mud water, what misery.

But in these harsh conditions, the true Dakar spirit emerges. On the stage to Ha’il, numerous participants get stuck, and pull each other out of the mud. Participants help each other onto dry land. Ultimately, stage 3 is neutralized, so that no one loses time because of the harsh conditions.

The Firemen truck arrives at the bivouac completely covered in mud and the men are cold and wet. Mealtime is a moment to recover. “We cook for ourselves with as many Dutch ingredients as possible, supplemented with local fresh fruit and vegetables.”

It’s still raining outside the tent.

Head roll

And then disaster strikes. Via the Firemen group whatsapp, a photo comes through of a very battered ‘Arnold’ with the text below: “crash, we are alright.”

There is momentary panic at the bivouac, but the realization that the men are okay brings calm. The photo is analyzed for the damage. It is immediately estimated which work needs to be carried out.

However, the crew decides not to wait and drives to meet the rally team. Still, everyone is visibly shaken when both truck and team arrive back at the bivouac. “This is the Dakar” they say. But how far does this go? Every year participants die in the rally. The team is happy that they got off relatively well.

It’s going to be a long, hard night. Partly thanks to the help of team Coronel, ‘Arnold’ is ready for the new stage the next morning.

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STAGE 4 HA’IL > HA’IL

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SERIOUS HILL CLIMBING

Ha’il is the capital of the north-central region of Saudi Arabia and so being north, and central, it is set at altitude. The terrain on the stage is not as severely affected by torrential rain as was Stage 3 but it presented some momentous, mountainous dunes for competitors. Vehicles were forced to crab sideways across the face of the sand dunes before they were able to reach the crest. Not everyone made it on the first try.

There were punctures, mechanicals, too little fuel for some, more rain, some very tight spaces to pass through amongst the rocky canyons and tricky navigation. Stage 4 had plenty to challenge the world’s best rally raiders on this Ha’il to Ha’il loop.

In the Classic, the Toyota HDJ80 of Morera and Ruba remain in the lead but with two 40km ‘dune tests’ to undergo, things may change. In the Classic, not all is equal and so racing is not always on the same track at the same time. The Ho and H1 categories will instead tackle two fast regularity tests where they can shine.

The youngest stage winner in Dakar history – Eryk Goczal climbed into 2nd place in the T4 general rankings at the end of today’s racing after taking a second stage win. Will it be a Goczal 1-2-3 podium finish with father, son and uncle stepping up to take the prizes? Australia’s Molly Taylor made her 2nd appearance in the top ten placings in today’s stage.

Lopez, Quintero, Guthrie and de Mevius are all familiar names at the top of the T3 list and in today’s Stage, it was Mitch Guthrie who was successful by more than 5-minutes. And familiar names again in the Trucks with Macik, van Den Brink (the senior), Loprais and Van Den Brink (the junior) making up the top 4 stage placings. Macik taking his third special of the race so far. Alexander Giroud continues to dominate the quad category with another stage victory, placing him 47 minutes ahead of his nearest rival Francisco Moreno.

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PERFORMANCE OF TEAM FJ

Anne and Jerome Galpin on the FJ Whelen Motorsports Protruck Team dominated the high speed category, winning all but one stage and leading the race from the prologue to the final finish! They also received a special award from the organisation in recognition of their performance and their “Dakar spirit”.

The other Team FJ crews were less successful: Valérie Yannick Panagiotis / Panasport were forced to retire after Yannick injured his back the day before the finish, while Guillaume and Faïza Maillard, like other competitors, suffered engine problems due to the quality of the local fuel.

Anne and Jérôme Galpin fully met their objectives and made the Team FJ and Whelen Engineering colours shine on this Dakar Classic 2023, while demonstrating the performance and reliability of the FJ-Protruck.

At the end of a broad domination that saw them take the lead from the prologue to the final finish and open the track during all the stages, they won their second victory in the high speed category (H3) in as many participations.

“A big thank you to our partners Whelen Engineering and Mc Donald’s for their support. We are extremely happy and proud to take this second consecutive victory after 7,500 km of racing, as well as to receive this special award

from the organiser,” says Jérôme Galpin, Team FJ driver. “Finishing such a competition is already an achievement, so to win it twice in two participations while we were rookies last year is really incredible. Anne did a great job navigating the race as we were leading the way on all the stages. Our FJ-Protruck was great throughout the 7500 km, it is really the absolute weapon for the Dakar Classic and what a pleasure to drive it always in drift on the different terrains encountered.”

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STAGE 5 HA’IL > HA’IL

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LOT’S OF SAND

It is a cold start to a lengthy stage as competition continued around Ha’il. It is a stage of sand tracks, the whole stage was 100% sand and there were traps, even for the most experienced competitors.

Among the casualties of Stage 5, are Laia Sanz and co-pilot Maurizio Gerini after flipping their car and writing it off. Seb Loeb tipped it over too, although he managed to get right side up and kept going to finish the stage with 20-minutes lost.

Despite the changes by FIA World Rally Raid Championship committee giving vehicles using renewable energies an extra 8kW, Nasser Al Attiyah in the Toyota Hilux posted another stage win – the 46th of his career.

In the bikes, Joan Barreda took a fall today and it was Adrien Van Beveren who beat the terrain and the navigation that troubled others.

Just seven-and-a-half minutes separates the leader of the T3 Gillaume de Mevius from Austin Jones. They are well ahead of Seth Quintero in 3rd place who is over one-hour behind the leaders.

Rokas Bacuiska won the day’s stage in the T4 category, bringing him closer to the top spot in the general rankings behind Rodrigo Luppi de Oliveira.

Ales Loprais and his team in their truck named “Lady” took the fight to rivals in today’s stage, coming out on top by a slim 16 seconds from Martin Van Den Brink. Three minutes separated P1 and P3 today with Janus Van Kasteren taking third placing.

In today’s Dakar Classic, 3rd placed crew in the general rankings, father and son Eric and Tom Claeys were a casualty with a broken crankshaft. Philosophically, Eric says “There’s nothing to say, things happen, that’s just how it is.”

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STAGE 6 HA’IL > RIYADH

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SAND CREATES FOR EXPERIENCE

How much do we love the roosts of sand being thrown up as vehicles power over the top of the dunes? Well, we love it lots, and the dunes provided a spectacle or roosts from the bikes to the trucks!

Most competitors would agree that the damp sand is better than the dry, but it doesn’t really seem to matter because both types have tested, trapped and tampered with competitors hopes. Stage 6 of Le Dakar 2023 featured lots of dune sand on a rain shortened Ha’il to Riyadh leg of the rally.

Even with all the experience of decades of rally racing behind them, these dunes got the better of some competitors. The Audi e-tron team’s hopes dashed by accidents in the dunes.

It is the nature of Le Dakar to throw up surprises and the 2023 edition is no exception. Senior riders and drivers are being usurped by younger, less experienced participants midway through the competition. Twentyyear-old old Dutch driver Mitchel Van Den Brink demonstrated his talent today with a win in the truck category. While the younger of the Benavides brothers brought home a win in the motorbike category.

Just because tomorrow is a rest day, doesn’t mean you can back off. What we know for sure is, that all teams, drivers, riders and crews (and photographers) are looking forward to the rest day tomorrow.

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DEFINITELY NOT A PUZZLE RIDE

Experienced rally driver Herman van Oldenmark participated in 2022 and decided to register again in 2023. This time not with experienced navigator Ad van der Werf but with newcomer Leon Schouten, whom he has known for decades. They will once again race the Mitsubishi Pajero Evolution, which is regarded as the ultimate Dakar rally car. The Dakar rally was won no less than 12 times with this ‘King of the Desert’.

No Dakar rally without mechanics

Men who are used to working in the field under time pressure and difficult conditions, mechanics Patrick and JP from the Creative Action service team. In addition to Herman and navigator Leon Schouten’s rally vehicle, two Classic rally cars are also being serviced, namely the Mitsubishi Pajero of the duo Jeroen de Jong and Sven Ebberg and the Volkswagen Taro pick-up of Bertus Altena and Anton Veenstra. Together with these two private teams, the Creative Action Classic Dakar 2023 team is formed.

Nose landing puts an end

The Van Oldenmark/Schouten team takes part in the Classic Dakar Rally with number 747. Despite a difficult start with a broken fuel pump, the 747 team quickly ends up in the daily top 15. The duo even manages to cross the line as the best Dutch participant in a stage.

Leon Schouten: “We had our affairs in order after three days. Our navigation system worked excellently and with Herman as a very experienced rally driver, the Pajero cuts like a knife through the rally butter. In our class, the average speed is above 80 km/h through the difficult terrain. Narrow passages and bad terrain quickly cause delays, which often means that you have to overtake above 120 km/h. Unfortunately, day 7 ended with a fatal jump in the dunes, which caused the differential to leak and we couldn’t continue.”

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RESTDAY RIYADH

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CELEBRATING REST DAY

Midway in the competition is Rest day. This is a much-needed day for drivers, co-pilots, and riders to rest, recuperate, especially after the harsh and rapidly changing weather conditions of the past days. There have been changes to the routes and unexpected torrential rain causing havoc.

But on this rest day, there is even time to celebrate a birthday. KTM teammates helped Kevan Benavides celebrate his birthday at Le Dakar with an astoundingly good-looking cake at the bivouac. Hopefully it tasted as good as it looked!

At this point in the race, there is only mere minutes separating the first three riders, which include KTM’s Toby Price and Kevan Benavides who are on the heels of Skyler Howes on his Husqvarna.

While it may be called a rest day, a lot of work is carried out on vehicles to ready them for the second half of Le Dakar 2023. Machines are stripped back, repaired, and prepared for another onslaught of racing.

Crews work hard to get them in top order so that they can continue to survive through the days ahead. The Empty Quarter is still to be faced and it will include a marathon stage where competitors will have no assistance from their crews.

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STAGE 7 RIYADH > AL DUWADIMI

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ROCKS AND SAND

Such diverse landscapes and terrain make a challenging experience for everyone in all classifications. The rocks and sand of the canyons and plateaus still fly, even for Le Dakar Classic competitors.

From dry riverbeds filled with suspension smashing stones waiting to catch competitors off-guard, to deep soft sand waiting to swallow up a car or truck.

The sand berms get softer and deeper as the competition goes on and the driving conditions become even more challenging.

The dark shale type rock of the canyons made for a stark contrast to the bright yellow sand of the dunes.

Due to the extreme weather conditions of the past few days, changes were made in the course, so today the bikes were separated from the rest of the field, and they headed straight for the bivouac.

The cars had no motorbike tracks to follow as they started Stage 7 from Riyadh to Al Duwadimi and navigators had to rely on their own skills even more. Nothing at Le Dakar is straight forward, and nothing is ever easy but that is all a part of the challenge to be met and tomorrow is another day.

At the end of Stage 7, the Moma Raid Team car 778 leads the Classic classification, with the Toyota HDJ80 number 704 in second position and third is another of the Land Cruisers –number 728.

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STAGE 8

AL DUWADIMI > RIYADH

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HALFWAY OF THE ADVENTURE

On another overcast day, Stage 8 began with a low mist. Today’s track took competitors amongst creek beds, washouts, water pools and high rocky hills. Again, another mixed terrain to challenge competitors and photographers alike.

The flouro colours of the Bastion Hotels Toyota Hilux driven by Maik Willems and codriver Robert Van Pelt stood out in the gloomy landscape.

The number 507 Riwald Dakar Team in their Renault C460 truck, piloted by De Baar and crewed by Kruger and Slootjes on the gas, climbing out of a creek bed pass close by our photographer on their way to a 4th position on the stage.

Competition amongst the side by sides in both the T3 and T4 classifications continued on strongly today whilst in Le Dakar Classic, car number 743, piloted by Nicolas Delencre and co- driver Eric Vandormael met with an immovable object, causing some damage to their V8 Land Rover.

French driver Guerlain Chicherit in the BRX Hunter number 206, finished 6th in today’s racing. Chicherit is also a world champion extreme skier but there was no snow to be found on the way to Riyadh from Al Duwadimi.

Truck 502, the Boss Machinery Team De Rooy Iveco piloted by Janus van Kasteren after yesterday’s stage win, dropped to finish 6th today.

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EMPTY QUARTER GOING BEYOND

Stage 9 has a particularly challenging ingredient: the Empty Quarter. It is the first visit for the Dakar rally to this region in the south of Saudi Arabia. And that makes it just that little bit more exciting!

Team captain of the Dakar Press Team, Léon Jansen; “It is, and remains, a wonderful adventure. No moment is the same and we too have to survive from start to finish. This brings us to the rough part of the rally after the rest day, where the challenge seems even greater for everyone. We’ve arrived in the Empty Quarter! There is a continuous stiff breeze. Dunes everywhere, the sand can be easily moved by the wind, with the result that the subsoil is unpredictable. The days before we still had quite a bit of moisture in the ground, which made the stage easy to read (after all, the dark places contain moisture, which makes the sand hard), from now on the route is filled with shifting sand. Soft powder, so you can easily get stuck in it.”

Ahmed’s sand-free office

Sand, sand, and more sand. After stage 9, everything is covered. “Our equipment, the inside of our Amarok, we ourselves and our eyes blink stiffly through the sand. On the way to the town of Shaybah, we stop along the way to edit the photo shoot of the day. Not really a success, because even though we are out of the wind and under our awning, the keyboards of our Macs are buried in sand in no time.”

And like every day, a person stops to inquire how we are doing. The friendly local man’s name is Ahmed. He invites us to come to a workers’ village. Ahmed turns out to be a camp manager and he offers us his office, where we have electricity and fast internet. But more importantly: no sand drift in his office.

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RIYADH > HARADH

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STAGE 9
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ALI BABA AND THE 40 THIEVES

Ahmed tells us that he is from Yemen. War has been raging between KSA and Yemen for 30 years, mainly caused by a few tribes. He does not want to say much more about it, which we think is quite sensible. He does share his knowledge about the Empty Quarter with passion.

“There is nothing but sand and wind, except for oil production. Only if you are very experienced and well prepared, do you venture into the dunes of this immense sandbox,” says Ahmed. “There are sinkholes in many places. Without realizing it, you can disappear with the vehicle and all. It’s like quicksand. Vehicles are regularly found after weeks of being missing and then it is already too late. Anyone who dares to enter the Empty Quarter faces a real risk of death.

And then there are the ruthless smugglers, who use this dangerous route to get illegal stuff into the Kingdom. Above all, do not enter into a conversation with them,” advises Ahmed. “Oh yes, several cells with terrorist motives use this southern part of Saudi Arabia as their home base.” Not really socially minded people either. “But,” continues Ahmed. “If I didn’t have to work this week, I would love to go into the Empty Quarter with you. It’s gorgeous.”

With this inspiring information we leave the workers’ village and continue our adventure.

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DUNES CAUSE TROUBLE

The sand dunes of the empty quarter will test everyone for four days. It is the first time Le Dakar has ventured into the vast expanse and while it feels like home for some like Ross Branch who has trained in the Kalahari Desert of Africa, the dunes are a special challenge to others. Nicknamed the “Kalahari Ferrari”, Branch won today’s bike stage.

There was a long drive to get to the vast Empty quarter so the race through the dunes consisted of only 114 kilometres but it was 90% dunes, giving everyone a taste of what is to come. Traversing the dunes feels like a roller coaster ride and to be successful here, you must be able to read the terrain. According to Mathieu Baumel, co-driver with Nasser Al-Attiyah, you must understand how the dunes are formed. “Based on the wind, there is always one side of the dunes that is kinder than the other – not as steep.”

Steep or not, even for experienced masters of rally raid, the dunes cause trouble. Three times previous winner of Le Dakar, Carlos Sainz is out of the rally for this year after rolling the Audi e-Tron, leaving only Mattias Ekstrom flying the flag for Audi. Ekstrom came in second on today’s stage.

And speaking of experience, MD Rallye Sport driver Christian Lavieille is competing in his 20th consecutive Dakar this year. His hopes of a tough and complicated 2023 race have been met and look set to continue. “The Dakar spirit involves knowing how to take your time, managing the difficult parts and looking after the machine… Let’s not forget: the Dakar is meant to be difficult”.

With only four stages left, the mechanicals, physical stresses and navigation are sure to prove difficult enough.

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STAGE 10

HARADH > SHAYBAH

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STAGE 11 SHAYBAH > EMPTY QUARTER

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QUARTER MARATHON

ENJOY THE SANDBOX

1st Marathon stage

The Empty Quarter or in Arabic; Rub-al-Khali. A desert with treacherous sand dunes in the south of Saudi Arabia, bordering Oman and Yemen. With an area of 640,000 square kilometers, it is the largest dune area in the world and is known for being frightening and inhospitable.

Not a place to get lost. But the immense dune area also offers breathtaking beauty and gives you the feeling of insignificance when you drive there.

Not only do the countless dunes form a challenge in this stage, but this first marathon stage will be driven around Shaybah. In a deserted place in the dunes, the participants will have to spend the night, without assistance.

And if something breaks, the competition crew will have to carry out the repair themselves. And then this: the drivers usually sleep in a comfortable camper or even more luxuriously. But not tonight. Tonight, everyone will spend the night in their own 2 second tent. Back to basics!

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BYPASS MISERY

Things are going well for Anja van Loon, who shares the Can-Am buggy with Ukrainian navigator Dmytro Tsyro in the T3 standings.

Every time she passes, it seems as if she is following a completely different line than her predecessors. Where the track is plowed up by the motorcycles, fast participants in the cars, but also by the devastating truck tires, she cleverly manages to avoid the misery and continue her way with a smooth line.

Her tactics paid off, because Erik van Loon’s wife managed to finish her very first Dakar rally flawlessly, resulting in a beautiful 63rd place overall.

In fact, she is three times the fastest Dutchman in the T3 standings. “Things are going really well,” the Brabant woman evaluates with satisfaction. “I’m sure it can be faster, but we avoid risks and still drive a good pace.”

That is certainly not an exaggeration.

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TRACKS

2nd Marathon stage

While competitors and their vehicles are still being tested by the dunes and sand of the Empty Quarter, Stage 12 also gave everyone the opportunity to test the speed of their vehicles in slightly different terrain as they crossed the chotts *.

With the time margin between the front runners of bike category being minimal, they certainly took advantage of the flat areas of the Chotts, as did the cars, the quads, and the SSV’s and the Trucks too. Positions are shuffling about slightly and times in some classifications are so close that it is still anyone’s race. Stage 12 and 13 are short stages, as competitors ready themselves for the final blast.

Only one day to go in the Empty Quarter before the rush to the finish line in Dammam on the east coast of Saudi, on the Arabian Gulf. After spending last night in the dunes on the marathon stage in their 2-second tents (for some it was more likely 20-minute tents), a night in the Shaybah bivouac will be very welcome.

* = A ‘Chott’ is a salty lake or marsh area which interrupted the race through the dunes and was reminiscent of the landscapes of the Chilean Atacama Desert in previous Dakar rallies.

EMPTY QUARTER

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SPEEDY

MARATHON > SHAYBAH

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QUARTER
STAGE 12
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Olga Roucková (also known as Ollie) is a Czech rally driver. She was born in Prague, Czech Republic. Rouckova began her rally career in 2005 and has since become one of the top female rally drivers in the world.

Throughout her career, Roucková has competed in a variety of different rallies and championships, including the European Rally Championship, the WRC, and is a four-time Dakar Rally participant (Quad, SidexSide, Classic, Classic).

She has achieved numerous top finishes in these competitions, including the Dakar Rally in 2018, where she finished third in the women’s Moto/Quad category. Ollie went on to finish this year’s Dakar Classic, the first woman

from the Czech Republic to do so. Roucková has also been involved in various other sport activities. She has worked as a runner in the Spartan Race, and she has also competed Overall in her age group in the European CEU series. Olga is a talented and accomplished rally driver who has achieved a great deal of success in her career, both on and off the track.

MECHANIC academy project

Together with the Czech Samurais team, Roucková presented on this Dakar Classic the new MECHANIC academy project. This year, a student from the technical field got a new chance to join the academy’s educational project, which supports young people in technical education and practice.

CZECH RALLY PRINCESS OLLIE ROUCKOVÁ

“SŠTR Nový Bydžov in cooperation with ENJOY motorsport z.s. and TH motorsport servis have been running a project for some time, in which pupils are offered the opportunity to learn about the technology used in races, the construction of sports cars and their safety features. In the newly renovated workshops, new racing cars are being built, as well as repairs and preparations for individual races.

“We intend to select one of our students to participate under supervision as a full mechanic for this race. Subsequently, other students would also have the opportunity to participate in the inspection and preparation of vehicles for the next years and possibly participate in some other races.”, says SŠTR Nový Bydžov.

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STAGE 13 SHAYBAH > AL-HOFUF

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SAND AND ROCKY TRACKS

The second last day of competition for Le Dakar 2023 begins in Shaybah and ends in Al-Hofuf.

The vast dunes of the Empty Quarter will be left behind today and eventually give way to rocky tracks towards the end of the day’s racing.

Two of the classifications are so close that noone is prepared to say who will take which spot on the podium. And as this is the Dakar, anything could happen. Upon leaving the bivouac this morning, bike rider Toby Price was in the lead by only 28 seconds but it was his teammate Kevin Benavides who triumphed today to take the lead into the final day of racing.

Sebastian Loeb today broke Ari Vatanen’s longstanding record by taking his sixth stage win in a row and his seventh in this edition of the Dakar. Al-Attiyah and Baumel are in the lead in the cars section by more than an hour so despite Loeb’s stellar performances, it is the Qatari who looks set to take the top level of the podium.

In the Trucks, tragedy for Martin Van Den Brink and his teammates with a mechanical taking them out of contention. Martin Macik moved up into second place by winning the stage, followed in by Van Kasteren. The Firemen Dakar Team reached 5th on this stage and overall puts them in 8th position in the general standings.

At the end of the Stage, Mitch Guthrie had added another stage win to his tally of five for the year but it is Austin Jones leading in the general ranking over Seth Quintero. In T4, 18-year-old young gun Eryk Goczal takes the stage win and moves closer to Rokas Baciuska.

The Dakar Classic was won today. There is only a road section for them to complete as the caravan travels into Dammam tomorrow. In their HDJ80 Landcruiser, Juan Morera and Lidia Ruba take line honours.

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SNAGGING GEARBOX

Before the start of the rally, Martin van den Brink knew one thing for sure. Son Mitchel is going to put in a special performance. And indeed, after stage 10, son climbs to a nice 4th place overall. The upward trend is very promising. A top 3 ranking seems feasible, while daddy Van den Brink is just that bit faster than junior every time.

During the rally, senior gets better and better and with the finish line in sight, a final victory seems possible. Martin starts the marathon stage in good spirits and has leader Janus van Kasteren breathing down his neck with a negligible time difference.

The attack is launched but then disaster strikes. There are technical problems and at the point where we photographers are standing with our noses in front to take pictures of the participants, it is not Martin but Mitchel thundering up the dune first. With the greatest of ease, he finds his way gracefully and has quickly disappeared over the surely hundred-metre-high dune. Not too much later, Dad follows, but he remains hesitant at the bottom of the dune. As if there is no faith that the truck will make it. Nevertheless, the climb is started, but halfway up the dune the truck is stuck in the sand. After a serious amount of pressure has been released from the tyres, another attempt is made, but hope for success fade.

Shortly afterwards, Mitchel reappears at the bottom of the dune. Dad has apparently asked for help. For what seems like an age, the crew sprints through the soft sand, from one truck to another. A large amount of lubricant is put into a filler hole from above, which should solve the technical problem. “The gearbox wouldn’t go higher than fourth. In neutral, it stayed in drive. We could not go faster than 90 kilometres per hour.” “Too bad we lost time, but thanks to my son we still made it through the dunes.”

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DOWN-TO-EARTH NORTHERNERS

Dutch players Bertus Altena and Anton Veenstra are newcomers to the Dakar Rally. They hail from the North of The Netherlands. Bertus already has some experience with off-road motorcycle rallies, but participating in a rally is new to Anton. After serious consideration, they decide to go for it in April 2022, competing in Bertus’ Volkswagen Taro pick-up which is more than 20 years old.

The VW Taro is skillfully converted by Ben de Paauw and Miranda van Middelkoop. In preparation, the rookies register for various major rallies and gain experience. Moreover, this preparation is necessary for obtaining the mandatory International Historic Rally Regularity license.

Best Dutchmen in H0 class

After the prologue on December 31, 2022, the Taro is classified in class H0. This division into classes H0 to H3 ensures that equivalent cars compete with each other, each in their own class.

On January 1, 2023, a number of tough RTs (regularity tests) begin, the experience gained earlier helps, but this is of a completely different order. Because the men are well attuned with each other, it is possible to quickly switch up to the level that the Dakar rally demands from its participants: act quickly, drive well, navigate carefully, always have your affairs in order and be ready when the organization requires it.

After 14 tough days, Bertus and Anton finish best in their class and best Dutch overall in the biggest and toughest rally in the world.

Congratulations guys!

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BOLK DAKAR RALLY TEAM FUTURE-ORIENTED

Permission too late

In the Classic Dakar Rally, nostalgia, experience, and participation are central. Or are they?

Participants may drive vehicles from the 1980’s and 1990’s, but some have hypermodern plans for their vehicle, such as newcomer Jaap Bolk.

As a Dakar rookie he starts in a Mitsubishi Pajero Evo that is over twenty years old. But it’s not just about racing, the team has a serious green ambition: to successfully complete the classification in a sustainable way by refuelling the vehicle with bio-ethanol. “We have a lot of experience with this fuel from autocross and now want to use it in the rally raid. The FIA is unfortunately not that far yet and this is prohibited within Dakar, but

after frequent good contact with the ASO, we recently received the green light.”

Unfortunately, this permission came too late for the 2023 edition. Adjusting the engine and the fuel system, testing and the logistics surrounding the bio-ethanol take a lot of time. “Now that we know that the ASO is positive and very interested in our project we will do everything we can to start completely CO2 neutral next year.” Will the image of Le Dakar Rally finally go green? It is great that, in addition to the activities of the Audi factory team, we are seeing more and more Dutch initiatives in the field of sustainability. This strengthens the future perspective of the sport.

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STAGE 14 AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM

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HAPPINESS AT THE FINISH LINE

It is the final day, a day full of mixed emotion and fully charged adrenaline for those teams and individuals who are still competing. In a few hours’ time, Dakar 2023 winners will be crowned and everyone, (including photographers) will be celebrating.

Another epic Dakar Rally is unfolding even on the last day with some categories too close to call and no one will know who the winners are until the very last competitor crosses the line in Dammam and times are tallied. This is especially so with the motorbikes, a showdown between Toby Price, Kevin Benavides and Skyler Howes will keep everyone on the edge of their seats.

The T4 classification will be fought out between two of the youngest competitors in the field Rokas Baciuška and Eryk Goczal.

The truck competition, has been full of drama and extremely competitive. Barring any mishaps, the Boss Machinery Team De Rooy Iveco, piloted by Janus van Kasteren looks set to take the stage.

Men, women, and vehicles have been tested to their extreme limits and none more so than the competitors in the Original Motul category who receive no assistance from mechanical crews. They must race and undertake their own mechanical repairs throughout the whole race. In this edition of the Dakar, it is South African, Charan Moore leading the category.

The dust, mud, tears, exhaustion, elation, and the disappointment are surely all on show in this final stage of the 2023 Dakar. The twists and turns have not only been in the Saudi Arabian terrain, but in the ups and downs in the classification rankings.

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FINISH PODIUM

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AT ITHRA DAMMAM

The 45th edition of the Dakar came to an end in Dammam after 14 stages that saw dramatic turnarounds in every category. Nasser AlAttiyah’s victorious campaign earned him the fifth triumph of his career, winning by the widest margin seen in the car race in 20 years. Second at 1 h 20, Sébastien Loeb who also added his name to the Dakar record books with a string of six consecutive stage wins (seven in total).

The scenario that unfolded in the motorbike race was even crazier. In a first for the category, Kevin Benavides seized the lead on the very last day, knocking Toby Price from the top of the general standings to prevail by 43 seconds, the narrowest winning margin ever in the Dakar.

Similarly, in the SSVs, the youngest Dakar entrant ever benefited from a massive plot twist in the last stage, as the leader, Rokas Baciuška, surrendered the top spot to the 18-year-old Pole Eryk Goczał, who will share the podium with his father, Marek, in third place.

In T3, victory went to Austin Jones, who had already brought the T4 trophy home last year, while the truck title went to Janus van Kasteren, the first Dutch winner of the race since Gerard de Rooy in 2016.

The winners and all the other competitors who showed their resolve to complete this gruelling route attended the podium ceremony in Ithra, at the cultural centre built by Aramco to mark the 75th anniversary of the company, which joined the Dakar as a major partner this year.

235 of the 355 vehicles that started the 2023 Dakar have made it to the finish: 80 motorbikes (out of 121), 10 quads (18), 46 T1 and T2 cars (67), 38 lightweight prototypes (47), 39 SSVs (45) and all 22 trucks, along with 80 out of 88 crews in the third edition of the Dakar Classic, the regularity race for 20th-century vehicles.

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CLOUD

After the finish we speak with Janus van Kasteren, the undisputed winner in the truck classification of Le Dakar 2023. Only a few Dutch people preceded him and that says enough about this amazing performance. Does he live on a pink cloud after this triumph?

“No, certainly not,” responds the down-toearth man from Brabant, The Netherlands.

“Just go back to work after returning home. However, I had never had flowers in my life and now the bunches come in every day. The people sympathize enormously; what a great experience.”

When asked how sweet the victory tastes now that Kamaz Masters and MAZ were missing, another cool answer follows: “You can only win against those who participate. In the beginning, it didn’t go so well. I drove for three days with a malfunction in the engine, so we had to turn it off and start it again. To make matters worse, we ran out of fuel shortly before the finish on stage three. The wastegate of the turbo was left open, so much more diesel was injected. Well, then the engine gasps for air and you fall silent. So we had to bleed it after refueling before we could continue. In the end, we managed to get to the finish that day.”

Thirty camels

Van Kasteren says he ended up in a very special situation during stage three. “Due to the heavy rainfall, the trial suddenly turned into a raging river. You don’t float so quickly with a truck, but around us we all found buggies that were in misery. We managed to drag several participants out of the swirling water to dry land. What a situation! Anyway, that’s also part of the Dakar Rally. It doesn’t always have to be good weather. The second half of the game went great, without too much bad luck. We broke some tires, but that happens to every participant. I like the rally in Saudi Arabia much better

than in South America. The country is very varied, with gravel, stone slopes, a lot of sand and beautiful dunes. We really enjoyed the beautiful scenery. Every now and then I said to Marcel Snijders and Darek Rodewald in the cabin: “Just look outside, guys. It’s beautiful here. You experience all sorts of things, such as thirty camels suddenly crossing the road. Of course you can’t get mad at those animals. You are a guest there and in their environment.”

Particularly dangerous

The Empty Quarter was on the program in the second part of the rally. “A lot of sand and dunes,” says Van Kasteren. “The conditions were very tough and the large dunes very dangerous. They turned out not to be as high as in Peru, but they were still steep climbs that we often had to take in three steps. In this part of the race we rode a marathon stage and it went great. The biggest challenge I had there was folding my tent. What a hassle. We didn’t have to repair anything on the IVECO. Just blow out the air filter and we were good again!”

The highlight for Van Kasteren is obvious: “Getting to the finish and knowing that we would win. Shortly before the finish line we stopped and the three of us celebrated a party. This victory is really down to the crew. Darek had already won Dakar three times and has a lot of experience. He radiates so much peace. If something breaks, he knows how to fix it, even if we don’t have the parts with us. He doesn’t say much, but once every few days he makes a decision that allows us to keep going. Whether it concerns the tire system or something about the engine, he notices if something is wrong. Marcel always knows the way. He is also so passionate and goes all the way. With his jokes he also keeps the atmosphere in the cabin good. That gives you energy and that is exactly what you need in a Dakar race.”

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WINNER

JANUS VAN KASTEREN

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THE HEROES OF DAKAR 2023

90 KIRSTEN LANDMAN ZAF 91 MIKE WIEDEMANN DEU 92 IGNACIO SANCHIS ESP 93 THOMAS KONGSHOJ DNK 95 NICOLAS ALBERTO CARDONAVAGNONI VEN 96 JACOB ARGUBRIGHT USA 98 FABIEN DOMAS FRA 99 JAVI VEGA ESP 100 STUART GREGORY ZAF 101 KYLE MC COY USA 102 PAUL NEFF USA 103 DAVID PEARSON USA 104 JAMES PEARSON USA 105 MORRISON HART USA 106 BERTRAND GAVARD FRA 107 LORENZO MAESTRAMI ITA 108 JULIEN BARTHELEMY FRA 109 KÉVIN DURAND FRA 110 PIERRE PEYRARD FRA 111 MICHAEL DOCHERTY ZAF 112 ARNAULT CHARDRON FRA 114 NEELS THERIC FRA 116 FERNANDO DOMINGUEZ ESP 117 OTTAVIO MISSONI ITA 118 BENJAMIN LEPELLEY FRA 119 LOIS D’ABBADIE FRA 120 WESLEY AALDERING NLD 121 STEVAN WILKEN ZAF 122 GARETH JONES CAN 123 RODOLPHE DE PALMAS FRA 124 TOMMASO MONTANARI ITA 125 IADER GIRALDI ITA 126 STÉPHANE HAMARD FRA 127 LAWRENCE ACE NILSON USA 128 CLÉMENT RAZY FRA 129 DAVID GAITS FRA 130 EUFRASIO ANGHILERI ITA 131 SERGIO VAQUERO ESP 132 JAVIER SAN JOSE YETOR ESP 133 RUBEN SALDAÑA GOÑI ESP 137 MATHIEU TROQUIER FRA 142 STEFAN SVITKO SVK 151 ALEXANDRE GIROUD FRA 152 MANUEL ANDUJAR ARG 153 JURAJ VARGA SVK 154 FRANCISCO MORENO FLORES ARG 155 KAMIL WISNIEWSKI POL

156 ZDENEK TUMA CZE 158 CARLOS ALEJANDRO VERZA ARG 159 MARCELO MEDEIROS BRA 160 AXEL DUTRIE FRA 162 LAISVYDAS KANCIUS LTU 163 PABLO COPETTI USA 164 TONI VINGUT ESP 165 SEBASTIEN SOUDAY FRA

166 GIOVANNI ENRICO CHL 167 ABDULAZIZ AHLI ARE 168 JULIO ESTANGUET ARG 169 ALEJANDRO FANTONI ARG 170 XAVIER VERBEKE FRA 171 DANIEL VILA VAQUES ESP

CARS / LW PROMO

200 NASSER AL-ATTIYAH - MATHIEU BAUMEL QAT FRA 201 SEBASTIEN LOEB - FABIAN LURQUIN FRA BEL 202 YAZEED AL RAJHI - DIRK VON ZITZEWITZ SAU DEU 203 JAKUB PRZYGONSKI - ARMAND MONLEON POL ESP

204 STÉPHANE PETERHANSEL - EDOUARD BOULANGER FRA FRA 205 GINIEL DE VILLIERS - DENNIS MURPHY ZAF ZAF 206 GUERLAIN CHICHERIT - ALEX WINOCQ FRA FRA 207 CARLOS SAINZ - LUCAS CRUZ ESP ESP

208 ORLANDO TERRANOVA - ALEX HARO BRAVO ARG ESP 209 MATHIEU SERRADORI - LOIC MINAUDIER FRA FRA 210 MARTIN PROKOP - VIKTOR CHYTKA CZE CZE 211 MATTIAS EKSTROM - EMIL BERGKVIST SWESWE

212 SEBASTIAN HALPERN - BERNARDO GRAUE ARG ARG 213 VAIDOTAS ZALA - PAULO FIUZA LTU PRT 214 BALTICS BENEDIKTAS - VANAGAS KULDAR SIKK LTU EST 215 ERIK VAN LOON - SÉBASTIEN DELAUNAY NLD FRA

216 BRIAN BARAGWANATH - LEONARD CREMER ZAF ZAF 217 HENK LATEGAN - BRETT CUMMINGS ZAF ZAF 218 CHRISTIAN LAVIEILLE - VALENTIN SARREAUD FRA FRA 219 LIONEL BAUD - RÉMI BOULANGER FRA FRA

220 JUAN CRUZ YACOPINI - DANIEL OLIVERAS CARRERAS ARG ESP 221 SHEIKH KHALID AL QASSIMI - OLA FLOENE ARE NOR 222 LAIA SANZ - MAURIZIO GERINI ESP ITA 223 PIERRE LACHAUME - FRANCOIS BEGUIN

BEL 224 HAN WEI - MA LI CHN CHN 225 MIROSLAV ZAPLETAL - MAREK SYKORA CZE SVK 227 TIM CORONEL - TOM CORONEL NLD NLD 228 JEAN REMY BERGOUNHE - LIONEL COSTES FRA FRA 229 ISIDRE ESTEVE PUJOL - JOSÉ MARIA VILLALOBOS VALCARCEL ESP ESP 230 LUCAS MORAES - TIMO GOTTSCHALK BRA DEU 231 ROMAIN DUMAS - MAX DELFINO FRA FRA 232 JÉRÔME PÉLICHET - PASCAL LARROQUE FRA FRA 233 ZHANG

GUOYU - JEAN-PIERRE GARCIN CHN FRA 234 OSCAR FUERTES - ALDANONDO DIEGO VALLEJO ESP ESP 235 DANIEL SCHRÖDER - RYAN BLAND DEU ZAF 236 SIMON VITSE - FREDERIC LEFEBVRE FRA FRA 237 TIAN PODU XUANYI CHN CHN 238 DENIS KROTOV - KONSTANTIN ZHILTSOV KGZ ISR 239 PASCAL THOMASSE - GÉRARD DUBUY FRA FRA 240 BALTICS GINTAS - PETRUS JOSE MARQUES LTU PRT 241 ANDREA LAFARJA - ASHLEY

GARCIA CHAVEZ PRV PER 242 CARLOS CHECA - MARC SOLA TERRADELLAS ESP ESP 243 MAIK WILLEMS - ROBERT VAN PELT NLD NLD 245 THOMAS BELL - GERHARD SCHUTTE GBR ZAF 246 AKIRA MIURA - LAURENT

LICHTLEUCHTER JPN FRA 247 MICHEL KREMER - THOMAS DE BOIS NLD NLD 248 ZI YUNLIANG - SHA HE CHN CHN 249 MOHAMAD ALTWIJRI - YASSER ALHAJJAJ SAU SAU 250 RONALD BASSO - JEAN MICHEL POLATO FRA FRA 251 ALEXANDRE PESCI - STEPHAN KUHNI CHE CHE 252 GERARD TRAMONI - DOMINIQUE TOTAIN FRA FRA 253 JEAN PIERRE STRUGO - CHRISTOPHE CRESPO FRA FRA 254 HUGUES MOILET - OLIVIER IMSCHOOT FRA BEL 255 SERGIO VALLEJO - MARIO GOZALEZ TOME ESP ESP 256 MANUEL PLAZA PEREZ - MONICA PLAZA VAZQUEZ ESP ESP 258 YANNICK PANAGIOTIS - VALÉRIE PANAGIOTIS FRA FRA 259 IBRAHIM ALMUHNA SAUD - NASSER ALTAMIMI SAU SAU 261 PHILIPPE RAUD - MAXIME RAUD FRA FRA 262 LUDOVIC GHERARDI - FRANÇOIS BORSOTTO FRA FRA 263 RONALD VAN LOON - ERIK LEMMEN NLD NLD 264 ANTOINE GALLANDYANNICK DEMAY FRA FRA 266 DAVE KLAASSEN - TESSA ROOTH NLD NLD 267 PHILIPPE VOISIN - FRANCK MALDONADO FRA FRA 269 MAGDALENA ZAJAC - JACEK CZACHOR POL POL 270 KAREL TRNENY - MILAN HORYL CZE CZE 271 GURBANBERDI DANATAROW - DIDAR ORAZMEDOW TKM TKM 272 HYDYRBERDI ABDURAHMANOV - MUHAMMETMYRAT GURBANOV TKM TKM 275 URVO MÄNNAMA - RISTO LEPIK EST EST 276 JEAN-

PHILIPPE BEZIAT - VINCENT ALBIRA FRA FRA 278 MARCO PIANA - NICOLAS GARNIER FRA FRA 300 FRANCISCO LOPEZ CONTARDO - JUAN PABLO LATRACH VINAGRE CHL CHL 301 SETH QUINTERO - DENNIS ZENZ US DEU 302 CRISTINA GUTIERREZ HERRERO - PABLO MORENO HUETE ESP ESP 303 AUSTIN JONES - GUSTAVO GUGELMIN USA BRA 304 GUILLAUME DE MEVIUS - FRANCOIS CAZALET BEL FRA 305 SANTIAGO NAVARRO - ADRIEN METGE ESP FRA 306 JEAN-LUC CECCALDI-PISSON - CEDRIC DUPLE FRA FRA 307 ANNETT FISCHER - ANNIE SEEL DEU SWE 308 FERNANDO ALVAREZ CASTELLANO - XAVIER PANSERI ESP FRA 309 SALEH ALSAIF JOAO - PEDRO VITORIA RE SAU PRT 311 CAMELIA LIPAROTI - XAVIER BLANCO GARCIA ITA ESP 312 DANIA AKEEL - SERGIO LAFUENTE SAU URY 314 MITCHELL GUTHRIE - KELLON WALCH US USA 315 MICHAEL PISANO - MAYEUL BARBET FRA FRA 317 ANTOINE MEO - FABIEN PLANET FRA FRA 318 JOAN FONT - THEMIS LOPEZ ESP ESP 319 HELDER RODRIGUES - GONCALO REIS PRT PRT 320 MASHAEL ALOBAIDAN - PAOLO CECI SAU ITA 321 AHMED ALKUWARI FAHAD - MANUEL LUCCHESE QAT ITA 322 IGNACIO CASALE - ALVARO LEON CHL CHL 323 MERCE MARTI - LISETTE BAKKER ESP NLD 324 JORDI

SEGURA VIDIELLA - SERGI BRUGUE ESP ESP 325 JEAN - PASCAL BESSON - DELPHINE DELFINO FRA FRA 326 XAVIER FOJ - ANTONIO ANGULO ESP ESP 327 ANJA VAN LOON - DMYTRO TSYRO NLD UKR 328 RICARDO

POREM - AGUSTO SANZ PRT ARG 329 DAVID ZILLE - SEBASTIAN CESANA ARG ARG 330 JAVIER VELEZ MATEO - MORENO KRISTIANSEN COL COL 331 KHALID ALJAFLA - ANDREI RUDNITSKI ARE ANA 332 CLAUDE

FOURNIER - ARNOLD BRUCY FRA FRA 334 JOSE CASTAN - JEAN-FRANCOIS PALISSIER FRA FRA 335 LUCAS DEL RIO - BRUNO JACOMY CHL ARG 336 BRAD SALAZAR - EUGENIO ARRIETA ECU ARG 337 JOÃO FERREIRA - FILIPE PALMEIRO PRT PRT 338 RAFAEL LESMES SUAREZ - EDUARDO RAFAEL NAVAL PEREZ ESP ESP 339 EBENHAEZER BASSON - BERTUS LEANDER PIENAAR ZAF ZAF 340 HANS WEIJS - TIM RIETVELD NLD NLD

GEOFF MINNITT - GERHARD SNYMAN ZAF ZAF 342 BENJAMIN LATTARD - PATRICK JIMBERT FRA FRA 343 ROGER GROUWELS - MAURICE VAN WEERSCH NLD NLD 344 ALIYYAH KOLOC - STEPHANE DUPLE SYC FRA

YASMEEN KOLOC - CALHEINE TAYE PERRY SYC DEU 346 PAMELA BOZZANO - CARLOS SACHS BRA BRA 347 ENIO BOZZANO JUNIOR - LUCIANO GOMES BRA BRA 348 ANTONIO MARMOLEJO - ARIEL JATON COL ARG

ALFREDO RUBIO FERNANDEZ - LUIS ALBERTO BENEDICTO SAN ANTONIO ESP ESP 350 PATRICIA PITA GAGO - RUBEN GARCIA URY ARG

244 DAKAR PRESS TEAM WWW. DAKARPRESS .COM BIKES / QUADS 1 SAM SUNDERLAND GBR 2 RICKY BRABEC USA 5 JOAN BARREDA BORT ESP 7 PABLO QUINTANILLA CHL 8 TOBY PRICE AUS 9 MASON KLEIN USA 10 SKYLER HOWES USA 11 JOSE IGNACIO CORNEJO FLORIMO CHL 12 MARTIN MICHEK CZE 14 SEBASTIAN BÜHLER DEU 15 LORENZO SANTOLINO ESP 16 ROSS BRANCH BWA 17 ROMAIN DUMONTIER FRA 18 DANIEL SANDERS AUS 19 RUI GONCALVES PRT 20 HARITH NOAH KOITHA VEETTIL IND 21 BRADLEY COX ZAF 23 KONRAD DABROWSKI POL 24 JAN BRABEC CZE 25 MOHAMMED BALOOSHI ARE 26 CAMILLE CHAPELIERE FRA 27 JOAQUIM RODRIGUES PRT 28 MACIEJ GIEMZA POL 29 DIEGO GAMALIEL LLANOS ARG 30 ANTONIO MAIO PRT 31 MATHIEU DOVEZE FRA 32 MILAN ENGEL CZE 33 FRANCO CAIMI ARG 34 EMANUEL GYENES ROU 35 PATRICIO CABRERA CHL 36 JEROME MARTINY BEL 37 STEFANO CAIMI ARG 38 EDUARDO IGLESIAS SANCHEZ ESP 39 BENJAMIN MELOT FRA 40 CHARAN MOORE ZAF 41 TOMAS DE GAVARDO CHL 42 ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN FRA 43 MARIO PATRAO PRT 44 MIRJAM POL NDL 45 DAVID PABISKA CZE 46 PAOLO LUCCI ITA 47 KEVIN BENAVIDES ARG 48 JOAN PEDRERO GARCIA ESP 49 CESARE ZACCHETTI ITA 50 SIMON MARCIC SVN 51 RACHID AL-LAL LAHADIL ESP 52 MATTHIAS WALKNER AUT 53 TONI MULEC SVN 54 DANIEL NOSIGLIA JAGER BOL 55 ZAKER YAKP CHN 56 SANDRA GOMEZ CANTERO ESP 57 MAKIS DEWI REES-STAVROS GBR 58 ZHANG MIN CHN 59 JOHN WILLIAM MEDINA SALAZAR CHL 60 FRANCISCO ARREDONDO GTM 61 ZHAO HONGYI CHN 63 PETR VLCEK USA 64 JOSEP MARIA MAS ARCOS ESP 65 GUILLAUME CHOLLET FRA 66 ALEX SALVINI ITA 67 FRANCO PICCO ITA 68 TOSHA SCHAREINA ESP 69 CESAR ROJO ESP 70 MISHAL ALGHUNEIM SAU 71 ABDULLAH AL SHATTI KWT 72 PHILIPPE GENDRON FRA 73 TIZIANO INTERNO ITA 74 MICHAEL JACOBI FRA 75 EDOUARD LECONTE FRA 76 JEANLOUP LEPAN FRA 77 LUCIANO BENAVIDES ARG 78 ALI OUKERBOUCH MAR79 LIBOR PODMOL CZE 80 JAMES MARTYN HILLIER GBR 81 MING JI FANG CHN 82 GABOR SAGHMEISTER SRB 83 JULIEN JAGU FRA 85 LIANSONG DENG CHN 86 CHARLIE HERBST FRA 87 LORENZO MARIA FANOTTOLI ITA 88 CÉDRIC JACQUES FRA 89 SUNIER SUNIER CHM
FRA
341
345
349

SSV

400 ROKAS BACIUSKA ORIOL- VIDAL MONTIJANO LTU ESP 401 MAREK GOCZAL - MACIEJ MARTON POL POL 402 GERARD FARRES GUELL - DIEGO ORTEGA GIL ESP ESP 405 MICHAL GOCZALSZYMON GOSPODARCZYK POL POL 406 RODRIGO LUPPI DE OLIVEIRA - MAYKEL JUSTO BRA BRA 407 PAU NAVARRO - MICHAEL METGE ESP FRA 408 ERIC ABEL - SERGE GOUNON FRA FRA

409 BRUNO CONTI DE OLIVEIRA - PEDRO BIANCHI PRATA BRA PRT 410 YASIR SEAIDAN - ALEXEY KUZMICH SAU ANA 411 NICOLAS CAVIGLIASSO - VALENTINA PERTEGARINI ARG ARG

412 JEREMIAS GONZALEZ FERIOLI - PEDRO GONZALO RINALDI ARG ARG 414 MOLLY TAYLOR - ANDREW SHORT AUS USA 415 XAVIER DE SOULTRAIT - MARTIN BONNET FRA FRA 416 TOMAS JANCYS - IRMANTAS

BRAZIUNAS LTU LTU 417 PAULO OLIVEIRA - MIGUEL ALBERTY MOZ PRT 418 FLORENT VAYSSADE - NICOLAS REY FRA FRA 419 PATO SILVA - XAVIER FLICK ARG FRA 420 PIETRO CINOTTO - ALBERTO BERTOLDI ITA ITA 421 PAUL SPIERINGS - JAN PIETER VAN DER STELT NLD NLD 422 NICOLAS BRABECK-LETMATHE - BRICE ALOTH AUT FRA 423 JUAN MIGUEL FIDEL MEDERO - JAVIER VENTAJA CRUZ ESP ESP 424 FREDERIC CHESNEAU - STEPHANE CHESNEAU FRA FRA 425 TOOMAS TRIISA - MART MEERU EST EST 427 PEDRO MANUEL PEÑATE MUÑOZ - ROSA ROMERO FONT ESP ESP 428 ERYK GOCZAL - ORIOL MENA POL ESP 429 JEAN-CLAUDE PLA - CYRIL PLA FRA FRA 430 SEBASTIAN GUAYASAMIN - RICARDO ADRIAN TORLASCHI ECU ARG 431 RAMON NUNEZ - MAURO ESTEBAN LIPEZ ARG ARG 432 FERDINANDO BRACHETTI PERETTI - MATTEO CASUCCIO ITA ITA 433 RICARDO RAMILO SUAREZ - DAVID RIBEIRO TELES MEGRE ESP PRT 434 CHRISTOPHE CRESP - JEAN BRUCY FRA FRA 435 MICHELE CINOTTO - MAURIZIO DOMINELLA ITA ITA 436 BENOIT LEPIETRE - PETER SERRA FRA FRA 437 CRISTIANO BATISTA - FAUSTO MOTA BRA ESP 438 ERIC CROQUELOIS - JEAN LUC MARTIN FRA FRA 439 SHINSUKE UMEDA - FACUNDO JATON JPN ARG 440 GERT-JAN VAN DER VALK - BRANCO DE LANGE NLD NLD 441 STEPHANE CONSANI THIBAULT - JEAN DE LA HAYE FRA FRA 442 CARLO CINOTTO - MARCO ARNOLETTI ITA ITA 443 OSCAR RAL VERDU - CARLOS JIMENEZ VALLS ESP ESP 444 CARLOS VENTO SANCHEZ - CARLOS RUIZ MORENO ESP ESP 446 CHRISTOPHE BAILLET - JEAN-LOUIS SIMON HERBETH FRA FRA 447 REBECCA BUSI - GIULIA MARONI ITA ITA 448 LUIS DIAZ - STANLEY SHERRINGTON CHL CHL 469 JEFFREY OTTEN - MARCO BOUMAN NLD NLD

TRUCKS

500 KEES KOOLEN - WOUTER DE GRAAFF - WOUTER ROSEGAAR NLD NLD 501 MARTIN MACIK - FRANTISEK TOMASEK - DAVID SVANDA CZE CZE CZE 502 JANUS VAN KASTEREN - DAREK RODEWALD - MARCEL SNIJDERS NLD POL NLD 503 MARTIN SOLTYS - ROMAN KREJCI - DAVID HOFFMANN CZE CZE CZE 504 VICK VERSTEIJNEN - ANDREAS VAN DER SANDE - TEUN VAN DAL NLD NLD NLD 505 JAROSLAV VALTR - RENE

KILIAN - TOMAS SIKOLA CZE CZE CZE 506 MARTIN VAN DEN BRINK - RIJK MOUW - ERIK KOFMAN NLD NLD NLD 507 PASCAL DE BAAR - STEFAN SLOOTJES - MARCIN KRÜGER NLD NLD POL 508 ALES LOPRAIS - PETR POKORA - JAROSLAV VALTR JR CZE CZE CZE 509 TOMAS VRATNY - BARTLOMIEJ BOBA - JAROMIR MARTINEC CZE POL CZE 510 RICHARD DE GROOT - MARK LAAN - JAN HULSEBOSCH NLD NLD NLD

511 MITCHEL VAN DEN BRINK - JARNO VAN DE POL - MOISES TORRALLARDONA NLD NLD ESP 512 BEN VAN DE LAAR - JAN VAN DE LAAR - ADOLPH HUIJGENS NLD NLD NLD 514 VAIDOTAS PASKEVICIUS - TOMAS

GUZAUSKAS - SLAVOMIR VOLKOV LTU LTU LTU 515 CLAUDIO BELLINA - BRUNO GOTTI - GIULIO MINELLI ITA ITA ITA 516 EGBERT WINGENS - MARIJE VAN ETTEKOVEN - MARIJN BEEKMANS NLD NLD NLD 517 BEN DE GROOT - TOM BREKELMANS - GOVERT BOOGAARD NLD NLD NLD 518 MATHIAS BEHRINGER - HUGO KUPPER - ROBERT STRIEBE DEU NLD DEU 519 TERUHITO SUGAWARA - HIROKAZU SOMEMIYA - YUJI

MOCHIZUKI JPN JPN JPN 520 GERT HUZINK - ROB BUURSEN - MARTIN ROESINK NLD NLD NLD 521 GERRIT ZUURMOND - TJEERD VAN BALLEGOOY - KLAAS KWAKKEL NLD NLD NLD 523 ALBERT LLOVERA - MARGOT LLOBERA - PETR VOJKOVSKY AND AND CZE 524 FIORI UMBERTO - DARIO DE LORENZO - ALDO DE LORENZO ITA ITA ITA 525 ALBERTO HERRERO - SUSANA HERNANDO INES - MARIO RODRIGUEZ SASTRE ESP ESP ESP 526 AD HOFMANS - REMON VAN DER STEEN - MARK SALOMONS NLD NLD NLD 527 RAFAEL TIBAU MAYNOU - ARNALD BASTIDA UBALS - JORDI ESTEVE ORO ESP ESP ESP 528 NICO STIJNEN - JOEL EBBERS

- MICHAEL VAN DER HAAR NLD NLD NLD 529 DAVE INGELS - JOHANNES SCHOTANUS BEL NLD 530 MIKLOS KOVACS - PÉTER CZEGLÉDI - ACS LASZLO HUN HUN HUN 531 ROBERT KASAK - TOMAS KAZARKA

- JAROSLAV KOLAR SVK SVK CZE 532 JOSE MARTINS - JEREMIE GIMBRE - ERIC SIMONIN PRT FRA FRA 533 WILLIAM VAN GRONINGEN - WESLEY VAN GRONINGEN - MARCO VAN OEVERN NLD NLD NLD

534 IGOR BOUWENS - SYNDIELY WADE - ULRICH BOERBOOM BEL BEL BEL 535 MICHAEL BAUMANN - PHILIPP BEIER - SEBASTIAN LINDNER DEU DEU DEU 536 TOMAS TOMECEK - NICCOLO FUNAIOLI - ARD MUNSTER

CZE ITA NLD 537 SYLVAIN BESNARD - NICOLAS FALLOUX - SYLVAIN LALICHE FRA FRA FRA 538 ADWIN HOONDERT - JASPER RIEZEBOS - ERWIN DE VOS NLD NLD NLD 539 DAVE BERGHMANS - SAM KOOPMANN -

TOM GEUENS BEL BEL BEL 540 RICHARD GONZALEZ - PATRICK PROT - ROGER AUDAS FRA FRA FRA 541 PEP SABATÉ - JORDI MONTANER BUSQUETS - POL TIBAU ROURA ESP ESP SSD 542 DUSAN RANDYSEK - JOEL

DARBOURE - ANTHONY ROBINEAU CZE FRA FRA 543 ALEX AGUIRREGAVIRIA - FRANCESC SALISI - JORDI PERERA ESP ESP ESP 544 JORDI CELMA OBIOLS - XAVIER MOREAU - CLAUDIO GIANFORMAGGIO ESP ITA

ITA 545 CESARE RICKLER DEL MARE - OSCAR BRAVO GARCIA ITA ESP 546 STEFAN HENKEN - PHILIPP RETTIG - MICHAEL HELMINGER DEU DEU DEU 547 ZSOLT DARAZSI - PIERRE CALMON - PALCO LUBOMIR HUN FRA

SVK 548 TARIQ ALRAMMAH - SAMIR BENBEKHTI - RAMZI OSMANI SAU DZA DZA 549 JAVIER JACOSTE - JUAN FRANCISCO SILVA PINEIRO - JOSE MARIA FONTDEVILA BOLOIX ESP ESP ESP 550 AHMED BENBEKHTIBRUNO SEILLET - MICKAEL FAUVEL DZA FRA FRA 551 JEAN-FRANCOIS CAZERES - JEAN-BERNARD ARETTE - DAVID HERLAUT FRA FRA FRA 552 DAVID GIOVANNETTI - RENATO DELMASTRO - PACO FERNANDEZ ITA ESP FRA 553 SEBASTIEN FARGEAS - ARMANDO LOUREIRO - LUC FERTIN FRA FRA FRA 554 PHILIPPE PERRY - PHILIPPE PEDECHE FRA FRA 555 GISO VERSCHOOR - LAURENT LALANNE - EDWIN VEGT VAN DER NLD FRA NLD

CLASSIC 700 SERGE MOGNO - FLORENT DRULHON 701 JÉRÔME GALPIN - ANNE GALPIN 703 KILIAN REVUELTA - MERCEDES MONTAMARTA

- ROBERT MUSI 714 CÉEDRIC ZOLLIKER - CLEMENS LANSING 716 RENE DECLERCQ - JOHN DEMEESTER 717 FRANÇOIS ABRIAL - CYRIL BELTRAMI 718 MATHIEU ABRIAL - THOMAS VIGUIER 719 ANDRES BRABECK-LETMATHE - ÉRIC BERSEY 720 PETER BRABECK-LETMATHE - JEAN-MICHEL GAYTE 721 LUCIANO CARCHERI - GIOVANNI FRANCESCO BERNACCHINI 722 VALENTINA CASELLA - MONICA BUONAMANO

724 JOSE VIDANYA - SERGI FERNÁNDEZ GARCÍA 725 KEES KAMP - JACOBINE KAMP-NOORDSIJ 726 CHRISTOPHE D’INDY - FRANÇOIS-XAVIER BOURGOIS 727 VINCENT TOURNEUR - CHRISTIAN LAMBERT

728 DIRK VAN ROMPUY - CHRISTIAAN MICHEL GORIS 729 GIAN PAOLO TOBIA CAVAGNA - GIANNI PELIZZOLA 730 CHRISTOPHE BERTELOOT - CORINNE BERTELOOT 731 OLIVIER MAHUL - LOÏC GAILLAC 732 PATRICK

DOBY - ANDRÉ TERRIER 733 JURAJ ULRICH - LUBOS SCHWARZBACHER 736 PASCAL LE BRUN - AUDREY ROSSAT 737 GUILAUMME MAILLARD - FAIZA MAILLARD 738 FRÉDÉRIC BARLERIN - MAGALI BARLERIN SIMONOT 739 RAINER WISSMANNS - CLAIRE DEYGAS 740 PATRICK SIREYJOL - THIERRY FRESARD 742 STEFANO MORO - DANIELE MANONI 743 NICOLAS DELENCRE - ÉRIC VANDORMAEL 744 DAVID CUPERS - CORINNE CUPERS 745 ERIC CLAEYS - TOM CLAEYS 747 HERMAN VAN OLDENMARK - LEON SCHOUTEN 748 LUIS PREDRALS MAROT - JAN ROSA I VIÑAS 749 RADEK VÁVRA - LUKÁŠ VÁLA 750 URBANO ALFONSO GHERARDO CLERICI - NICOLA ALESSIO COLOMBO 751 MICKAËL RANCHIN - PHILIPPE ROBERT 752 DANIEL ALBERO PUIG - SONIA LEDESMA GÓMEZ 754 FRANCISCO JAVIER BENAVENTE - RAFAEL BENAVENTE DEL RIO 755 ONDREJ MARTINEC - GABRIEL ZUBOR 756 OGLA ROUCKOVA - JIRI KOPRIVA 757 JEAN-CHRISTOPHE MOINE - LIONEL JADOT 758 JAAP BOLK - MARCEL VAN WORT 759 BERTUS ALTENA - ANTON VEENSTRA 760 JEROEN DE JONG - SVEN EBBERG 761 EVANGELOS BERSIS - FOTIOS KOUTSOUMBOS 763 GUIASTI FRANCESCO - GUASTI ALLESANDRO 764 MARCO ERNESTO LEVA - ALEXIA GIUGNI 766 DAVID BIZZOZERO - PIETRO D’AGOSTINO 767 DUTSCHLER GIAN ENRICO - EMANUELE SPRIANO 768 GIUSEPPE POZZI - MATTEO GIOVANNI DENTI FILIPPO 773 ASIER DUARTE RODRÍGUEZ - LUIS BARBERO GARCÍA 775 LORENZO FLUXA DOMENE - SERGI

GIRALT VALERO 776 PAOLO BEDESCHI - DANIELE BOTTALLO 777 JAVIER BURILLO TÉLLEZ - MANUEL LÓPEZ SOLER 778 JUAN MORERA - LIDIA RUBA 782 FERNANDO NAVARRETE PERDICES - CRISTOBAL MORA REINDSA

784 TOM KLOOSTERMAN - NIEK LICHTENBERG 788 ANTONIO RICCIARI - SIMONA MOROSI 789 RODRIGO RAMÍREZ - ROGERS RAMÍREZ 790 GAROSCI RICCARDO - BRIANI RUDY 791 CHRISTIAN PERRIER - GÉRARD BOUVET 792 LORENZO PIOLINI - FRANCO MAJNO 793 ERIK QVICK - JEAN-MARIE LURQUIN 795 MIQUEL MARTI PIERRE - XAVI RIBAS 796 ALFREDO CAVOZZA - ADRIANO FURLOTTI 801 MATHIEU KURZEN - ALEXANDRE FATIO 804 JEAN-LOUIS

MALSERGENT - MARIE-NOËLLE MALSERGENT 805 JOSÉ NICOLÁS GONZÁLEZ - AMADEO ROIGE BRAGULAT 806 PETER SCHEY - CHRISTOPHER SCHEY 900 RADOVAN KAZARKA - JOSEF KALINA - PAVOL ZACHAR 901JANUS VAN

KASTEREN SR. - HERMAN KEIJSERS - THIJS HEEZEN 902 HUGO DUISTERS - REMCO DE VOS 905 SANDRA RIVIÈRE - EMMANUEL RIVIÈRE 906 BAUTISTA URBANO SANCHO - CHRISTIAN ALBAMSA 907 JUAN MANUEL GONZÁLEZ - RAFA MUÑOZ CAMARA - JORGE TORAL 909 MARCO GIANNECCHINI - LUCA MACRINI - FRANCESCO MARIA PROIETTI 910 GILDAS CARNET - BRUNO GRILLI - OLIVIER GUILLORY 912 BRENDOLAN STEFANO - MARCO CORBETTAMUSSETTO VINCENZO 913 GIUSEPPE FRANCESCO SIMONATO - ANDREA CADEI 914 FRANCISCO DEL POZO MARTÍNEZ - DANIEL CESTEROS GARCÍA - GUSTAVO CASTRO RODRÍGUEZ 915 JORDI GINESTA - VALENTIN DEVIC - YANN

PELLEGRIN 916 JUAN DONATIU - JOAO FORTES - JOAQUÍN VILATARSANA

245 DAKAR PRESS TEAM WWW. DAKARPRESS .COM
704 CARLOS SANTAOLALLA - ARAN SOL I JUANOLA 707 JULIEN TEXIERJÉRÉMY ATHIMON 709 ONDREJ KLYMCIW - TOMAS BOHM 710 FRÉDÉRIC VERDAGUER - STÉPHANE XERCAVINS 711 PHILIPPE JACQUOT - JEAN-JOSEPH BACHELIER 712 DIEGO DELESPEAUX - JULIE VERDAGUER 713 LUCA VENTURI

© 2023

Text: Karina Donohoe, Léon Jansen, Léon Schouten Thanks to Aramco for providing content

Production: Léon Jansen

Photography: Léon Jansen, Gerard Laurenssen, Andrew Eaton, Coen Schlüter, Ewout Batstra, Leon Schouten

© 2023 Publisher: Car Content Factory Dorp 94B 3415 PH Polsbroek - The Netherlands Contact: Léon Jansen leon@dakarpress.com Facebook.com/dakarpressteam dakarbook.com 246 DAKAR PRESS TEAM WWW. DAKARPRESS .COM
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