Winning the Dakar is no easy feat, and while there are those who succeed relatively quickly, others like Sebastien Loeb have to wait several years. The Frenchman is still searching for his first Touareg trophy and, although it is “not an obsession” for him, he is aware that he has no excuses for his experience in the toughest race in the world.
The Frenchman will try his luck for the eighth time and, although he already knows what it means to finish on the podium, he wants to achieve his goal: “It's not an obsession, but I already have a lot of experience here, with some podiums, and everything that First place remains. I will do my best to win, but it's difficult to make predictions: many things can happen and the only thing I can do is give my best every day.”
The WRC legend will share the facility with reigning world champion and winner of last year's Dakar, Nasser Al-Attiyah, of whom he said: “I think we'll see at the end of the stage, I always give my best in the special stages , and Nasser's arrival brings a lot of experience, with the best driver in recent years in this rally. For me it's extra pressure, but we'll see what I can do.”
Furthermore, his team has made slight improvements in important aspects such as the tyres, which caused so many problems last year: “We have made a good evolution with the tyres, and I hope to get through the stages with fewer punctures. Last year was It's been tough and it will be tough this year too, but I hope that this evolution helps us as much as possible.”
His compatriot, Stephane Peterhansel, also wants to aim for victory, but for him the motivation is not just victory: “For me the Dakar is the best possible competition, but my second passion is nature, and here the two are combined things. It's not a motivation, I always want to be here: victory is the goal, but it's not easy.”
“We have seen it in these two years, which has been complicated for us, even if in 2023 it was my mistake with the dune, we will see this, but we hope to finish the race at least on the podium”, explained the driver who he won several times in the desert. “If I win, it will be the best way to demonstrate the evolution of the car. That's why I'm still motivated, we're taking one step at a time and we'll see what happens.”
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