The Dakar Rally is upon us and Carlos Sainz is facing what appears to be Audi's last chance to secure a long-awaited victory. The Spanish driver presented his project at the Jarama Circuit, where he revealed the final look of his RS Q e-tron and stated that it is the “best” car made by the German brand in its three participations.
The Spaniard insisted that he was motivated to travel to Saudi Arabia to aim for victory, which would be the fourth of his career, and although nothing is decided beyond that, he hopes to do well: “It is possible that it will be the last , but it hasn't been decided yet. We have put the entire Audi team on the field, because three years ago, when it all started, it seemed like science fiction, but an effort was made to race, winning stages, and we hope this year to fight until in the end”.
The two-time WRC world champion said that the car he will drive on January 5, 2024 is undoubtedly the best that the German company has offered him, and commented on a key factor that pushed him to risk more than he wanted to: “It's the best Audi, without a doubt, it couldn't be otherwise. Last year the suspension gave us some problems and after the rally we thought about taking another route, and so it happened.
“We have a car with better, more comfortable suspension, and this will help us, as well as continue to work on reliability, but it is such a complex car, that even if it is the third year, new things are always coming out,” continued the Spaniard . It's not easy, because Morocco wasn't easy, but we are closing the circle and hope to have a clean Dakar.”
The aspect he wanted to focus on is the weight-power ratio, perhaps the most important and the one that most influences the performance of the RS Q e-tron: “You all know, you can go back in time, and go with a car a hundred kilos heavier and with less power, which was then equalised, it was like fighting against a wall, it's the law of the engine, the weight-power ratio”.
Photo by: Audi
Audi RS Q e-tron
“It's not that the electric power is greater or less, it was clear to me from day one, and the telemetry proved us right, last year we started lower and they gave us 8kW more, and this year we have more they have more data, I think 15kW”, explained Carlos Sainz, who imagined that increasing the weight compared to the rest of the teams would not have been feasible. “To put more weight on the rest of the teams, the brands will have asked to do it, but they will have said no.”
“Even if you add more weight, and not power, it is more unpleasant to drive, the parts suffer more than with a lighter car, and I imagine that when the situation arises, with more weight for others or more power for Audi , and with the tables, everyone would say that we would give the power that touches, without complicating the rest, which would force them to modify suspensions and parts, I think that would be the discussion and the result”, said the Spaniard.
“We are a hundred kilos heavier, but with that power it makes up for it and we will be a little more on par, without having to take those risks of the first two years to try to stay with them,” said the Audi driver. In the Dakar, if you take a lot of risks, you can gain time, but there are always traps and, no matter how brave you are, you get caught.”
The 2024 Dakar Rally could be seen as a transition event, as Nasser Al Attiyah is preparing for a move to Dacia, like Sébastien Loeb, or for the arrival of the new generation at Toyota, but Carlos Sainz doesn't see it that way : “I don't see it as a transition year, because in this third Audi, the Prodrive car, also has more or less this, they won stages with Loeb, it's a competitive car, and Nasser also won the Baja in Dubai.”
“It's not a transition, we know what Saudi Arabia is preparing for us, even if with the roadbook there is no longer a lottery or absurd situations in which anything can happen, I don't consider it a transition,” explained the Spaniard. “The Dacia will be an advanced Prodrive car compared to the current one. We don't know what will happen with Audi, and there will be the arrival of Ford, with Nani, to whom I send a hug for what has happened, and it's great news to have him” .
“Toyota has experienced drivers with Giniel de Villiers and Yazeed Al Rajhi, and new ones with Lucas Moraes and Seth Quintero. It will be more difficult to conquer the top places, but I think Nasser [Al Attiyah]Sébastien Loeb, Stephane Peterhansel, Mattias Ekstrom and Toyota are the protagonists of the rally”, declared the three-time Dakar winner.
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