Dakar Rally 2023: heroes and unlucky ones
Unexpected Audi debacle
Audi started as the favorite for the Dakar Rally with three electric cars. But the two-week racing marathon in Saudi Arabia ended in disappointment for the Audi factory team. Toyota won again in 2023.
Published: 5:37 am
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Updated: 59 minutes ago
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The Dakar participants covered 8,500 kilometers from January 1st to 16th in Saudi Arabia. We went through tire-killing stone deserts and over towering sand dunes.
Wolfgang Hörner and Raoul Schinnen
16 days and 8,500 kilometers at racing speed through tire-killing stone deserts and over towering sand dunes – that was the 2023 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia. The participants were often left to their own devices. Because unlike the years before, there were more stages without service options this year. This means that the drivers and co-drivers had to repair any damage themselves overnight.
Of course, such an adventure writes heroic stories. For example, about Nasser Al-Attiyah (52) and his navigator Mathieu Baumel (46). After 2022, the two won the cross-country rally again this year with their works Toyota GR Hilux. The third stage, which was completely rain-drenched, brought them to the top of the rankings early on – and they stayed there until the last day. The driver from Qatar and his French co-driver benefited from the bad luck of the competition. But they also knew how to skilfully manage their large lead. This is already the fifth Dakar victory for Al-Attiyah.
Loeb’s great comeback
Nine-time world rally champion Sébastien Loeb (48) and his co-driver Fabian Lurquin (47) also became heroes. On the road in the Prodrive-Hunter, a British car used by the Bahrain Raid Xtremee team, they were initially regarded as the secret favorite alongside the works teams from Audi and Toyota. But punctures and an accident on the fifth stage threw the French duo far back. With a deficit of more than two hours to the leaders, the race seemed over. But Loeb didn’t give up, drove like a man possessed and then won six special stages in a row – something no one else has managed to do at the Dakar Rally before. In the end, the wild race to catch up brought him 2nd place in the overall rankings.
Tragic hero Sainz
Two-time world rally champion and three-time Dakar winner Carlos Sainz (60) fought heroically in the electric works Audi. After team-mate Stéphane Peterhansel (57) had to retire early due to an accident and the other two Audi RS Q E-Tron had also dropped back early due to defects and accidents, the team changed its tactics. Instead of overall victory, you now drove to as many stage victories as possible. The father of the Ferrari F1 driver Carlos Sainz accelerated, won the eighth stage, but rolled over on the following stage on a crest of a dune. Sainz was rescued by the rescue helicopter with pain. But “El Matador” didn’t want to give up that quickly. After 20 minutes of flight time, he instructed the pilot to turn around and return to the scene of the accident, where co-driver Lucas Cruz (52) was waiting for him. But the hours-long commitment of the two to get the Audi going again didn’t help – the car remained irreparable. After the retirement of the second works car, Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist, the last Audi pairing still in the race, was only concerned with crossing the finish line safely.
Organizer must have the books
How will the Dakar Rally and the associated Raid Rally World Championship be more environmentally friendly? Hybrid technology as used in the WRC World Rally Championship is rejected by most teams and manufacturers. It makes the vehicles significantly more expensive and complex, which promptly led to a dramatic decline in private teams in the WRC. And more than there, the Dakar Rally is primarily carried out by private participants and not by the dozen or so works cars. So good advice is expensive.
How will the Dakar Rally and the associated Raid Rally World Championship be more environmentally friendly? Hybrid technology as used in the WRC World Rally Championship is rejected by most teams and manufacturers. It makes the vehicles significantly more expensive and complex, which promptly led to a dramatic decline in private teams in the WRC. And more than there, the Dakar Rally is primarily carried out by private participants and not by the dozen or so works cars. So good advice is expensive.
Tire damage on the running meter
Two retirements and only one finish in 14th place – of course Audi had expected more. And so it’s now about drawing the lessons from this sobering appearance for 2024. Why, for example, were there so many punctures? All participants were traveling with standard tires. But only at Audi did they break in rows. Ekström suffered three flat tires on one stage, and the vehicles are only allowed to carry two spare wheels. A possible reason could be that the Dakar cars were allowed to be 200 to 300 kilograms lighter when the tire type was developed. The Audi team shouldn’t run out of development and testing work over the summer if they want to have a chance next year.
Rain chaos in Saudi Arabia: Pilots fight against raging rivers in desert rally(01:20)