Qatar's Nasser Al Attiyah (front row, right), his navigator Mathieu Baumel (FRA), with other drivers and riders during a press conference ahead of Dakar 2023 at Sea Camp near Yanbu, Saudi Arabia. Pic: Dakar.com/DPPI
Doha: Qatar driver and the defending champion Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah will be looking to bag his fifth title at the pinnacle of rally racing, Dakar 2023 which flags off today on the shores of the Red Sea, Saudi Arabia.
When it comes to endurance races in motor sport, nothing can quite compete with the annual Dakar Rally which starts its 45th edition today.
This year’s event stretches 8,549 km over 15 days of racing, including a four-day excursion into the as yet unexplored desert dunes of the vast Rub’ Al Khali, or Empty Quarter.
“’Be Afraid’ seems to be the message of the route for the 2023 Dakar,” said organisers when they revealed the course at the start of December.
The warning does not appear to have put anyone off: more than 800 riders, drivers and co-drivers will set off in an array of motorcycles, cars, quads, trucks and light vehicles when the race begins on Saturday.
Among them some well-known names, including nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb (BRX) who will be Al Attiyah's leading rival at this year's rally.
“For me, the biggest rival will be Loeb because Seb finished second in 2022, he won in Morocco and Andalusia,” the multi-talented Qatari driver told autosport.com in an interview.
An aerial view of a bivouac by the Red Sea coast near Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu ahead of the 2023 Dakar Rally. AFP
“And the performance of BRX is very strong, so Loeb will be very strong, and also Carlos and the Audis. We just need to see the performance after three days of the Dakar,"Al Attiyah who is teamed up with his reliable navigator Mathieu Baumel, said.
“We are here at the 2023 Dakar to defend the title with our new car. I tested in Southern Africa, in Namibia, for four days, and yesterday we tested [here] and today also. It's a new car, although it's similar to the one from the last Dakar," the Toyota Gazoo Racing driver said.
“The first [days] won't be easy for navigation, it will be similar to last year, but it's not easy. The second week of the Dakar is a new place for everyone, so it will be interesting.”
Loeb said: “It’s 14 stages, it’s very long, a proper endurance rally. We need to find the right pace to get to the finish with as few mistakes as possible.” The Frenchman, who has just won the 2022 edition of the Extreme E, has a tough battle in front of him if he is to improve on his three podium finishes and chalk up that first win.
Nasser Al Attiyah's Toyota Hilux is seen during the Technical scrutineering. DPPI
Other top podium prospects include another WRC legend Carlos Sainz (Mini) as well as the Dakar great Stephane Peterhansel (Audi) who has won the event 14 times -- eight in a car and six on a bike.
On the motorcycle side, defending champion Sam Sunderland (GasGas) will face a stiff challenge from the likes of Daniel Sanders (GasGas), Pablo Quintanilla (Honda), Matthias Walkner (KTM) and Adrien Van Beveren (Honda).
The rally, of course, is no stranger to security issues.
The first race in 1978 set off from the Trocadero in Paris and ended in the Senegal capital but after 29 years in Africa, the threats became too great.
That meant moving the race to South American for 11 years before switching it to Saudi Arabia in 2020. The rally ends on January 15 on the kingdom’s eastern sea border.
Dakar Rally: last 10 winners (Cars)
2022: Nasser Al Attiyah/Mathieu Baumel (QAT-FRA/Toyota)
2021: Stephane Peterhansel/Edouard Boulanger (FRA/Mini)
2020: Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz (ESP/Mini)
2019: Nasser Al Attiyah/Matthieu Baumel (QAT/FRA/Toyota)
2018: Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz (ESP/Peugeot)
2017: Stephane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (FRA/Peugeot)
2016: Stephane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (FRA/Peugeot)
2015: Nasser Al Attiyah/Matthieu Baumel (QAT/FRA/Mini)
2014: Nani Roma/Michel Périn (ESP/FRA/Mini)
2013: Stephane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (FRA/Mini)
Most wins
14 - Stephane Peterhansel (FRA) (8 in cars, 6 in motorcycles)
5 - Cyril Neveu (FRA) (all motorcycles), Marc Coma (ESP) (all motorcycles)
4 - Ari Vatanen (FIN) (all cars), Edi Orioli (ITA) (all motorcycles), Nasser Al Attiyah (QAT) (all cars)
