Dakar Rally: A tyre or regulatory issue?

PHOTO CREDIT: Toyota GAZOO Racing South Africa.

The world's toughest rally raid, the Dakar Rally has come and gone, but it will always be remembered for two specific reasons. Let’s not keep you waiting. It’s time to dive in...

Winner winner chicken dinner! A phrase often used to celebrate victories. So, with that being said, let’s segue into the first talking point, as to why the 2021 Dakar Rally will be remembered. First of all, the strategic masterclass from Stéphane Peterhansel and co-driver Edouard Boulanger (X-Raid Mini JCW) is a main talking point. So, why use the word “Strategic Masterclass”? It’s pretty simple! From the outset, the French duo had one goal and one goal only – try not to open the road, and it actually paid off. Despite winning one stage (stage 9), Peterhansel and Boulanger clinched the 2021 Dakar Rally title. 

And, whilst winning will always be remembered... The second talking point or reason why the 2021 Dakar Rally will stay fresh in the minds of fans and drivers is due to one thing: Punctures. The T1 class 4x4 vehicles had more punctures than their two-wheel-drive counterparts, and Toyota Gazoo Racing SA is a direct example of this. The South African run team conducted pre-Dakar tyre testing after suffering from a number of punctures in 2020, but unfortunately, despite the hard work in trying to find a solution. The team had more punctures than expected. 

The Dakar Rally moved to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2020 for what it called “Chapter 3” in the ever-expanding history of the rally raid, which was won by Mini X-Raid JCW’s Carlos Sainz and co-driver Carlos Sainz, whilst Toyota’s Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Matthieu Baumel come out second best. 

The intense two-week rally raid sees competitors traverse through landscapes ranging from deserts, muddy terrain, ravines, and rocky mountain passes in intense heat, whilst aiming not to lose a tenth to their rivals. 

The Dakar is a challenge on its own… throw in a global pandemic, and it became a lot harder but thankfully, the Saudi Arabian government made it a bit easier for the event to take place in 2021. 

Having had a taste of the Saudi Arabian conditions in 2020 and its landscapes. Each team had an idea of what they could introduce or change on their vehicles for the 2021 edition. And, after coming out second best to Carlos Sainz in 2020, Al-Attiyah set his set sights on the overall victory in 2021, but work had to done to find a solution for the punctures that the team suffered in 2020. So, Toyota Gazoo Racing SA conducted pre-Dakar tyre testing with Giniel de Villiers and Nasser Al-Attiyah. The team was quite confident that they had found a solution are were ready for the 2021 Dakar. 

Unfortunately, it was not to be. The three-time Dakar Rally winner, Nasser Al-Attiyah brought his Toyota Hilux home in second-place yet again. The Qatari driver made it clear that this crew (co-driver and team) made no mistakes over the course of the two-week event, and despite claiming five stage wins, it was not enough for the overall win. 

Speaking after the Dakar, Al-Attiyah made it clear that the current sporting regulations clearly favour the two-wheel-drive buggies. 

“This is the second year that we are fighting, and losing against the buggies. We need to have fair rules,” the three-time Dakar Winner said. “No matter how hard we push, without speed along we can not close the gap. The buggies have been winning for five years against the 4x4 car because the rules have been done in their favour. I hope that organisers will change it, otherwise, we won’t be interested in coming [back].”

"It is not a question of where the buggy is better and where the 4x4 is better. The rules are not fair, just that. Not only because of the wheels, there are many things. I am not the one who has to change it, but everything is very clear,” he concluded. 

Having had a top speed disadvantage a year earlier, the FIA announced that T1 class vehicles, including Toyota and Mini X-Raid would be limited to 180km/h for 2021 after lobbying from Toyota. 

A slight step in the right direction for Toyota’s fight against the mighty buggies, but their 2021 campaign would be rather deflating. Deflating? Why, was it deflating you ask? Well, Toyota’s Giniel de Villiers led the charge but not a positive charge. Rather a deflating charge. The South African picked up more punctures than you can count on your hands over the two-week event. 

In total, Toyota Gazoo Racing SA had 106 punctures over 12 stages, with an average of 26.5 punctures across the four-car team. Is that even possible? Unfortunately, it was a reality for the team. Is it solely related to the tyres? It is a regulatory issue? Or is the landscape to blame?

Well, we can rule out the landscape. Why? Because these the routes are pre-planned by the ASO and the cars are built around regulations for the specific championships or series.

Henk Lategan, Toyota Gazoo Racing SA driver films an explanation of the difference between 4x4 and Buggy tyres.

Video Supplied By; Brett Cummings

In recent years, 4x4 vehicles were the way to go. However, there has been a recent shift to two-wheel-drive buggies. So, let’s discuss this a bit further. Peugeot was the first manufacturer to introduce buggies. The Frenchman manufacturer introduced the 3008 DKR buggy in 2017, which powered Peterhansel and Sainz to victory in 2017 and 2018. And, ever since then we have seen a growing field – Mini X-Raid JCW, Century Racing, Bahrain Raid Xtreme to name a few teams. To add to the conversion, Audi announced their intentions to enter the Dakar Rally in 2022 with alternative power. Can you guess the concept for their entry? Yes, you’re right! They are building a buggy. 

It’s pretty clear that buggies are the way to go, although 4x4 vehicles can still hold their own against the buggies. 

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

There is a clear difference, from regulatory rules to the difference in tyres between the 4x4 vehicles versus the 2-wheel-drive buggies. The 4x4 has a larger footprint compared to the taller wheels on the buggies.

So, in order to get a better grasp of the main talking point “the punctures”, we spoke to BFGoodrich, and asked them a few questions.

As the number of punctures became a big talking point of the 2021 Dakar Rally, were there any specific issues with the tyres that led to so many punctures? And, how would BFGoodrich explain the increase in punctures seen this year?

“The 4x4 cars and 2wd buggies have differing rule sets which can ultimately affect performance. This includes, but is not limited to weight, wheel and tyre size; and suspension travel,” BFGoodrich said. “The AWD cars utilize a 800mm diameter tyre and are limited to 280mm of suspension travel. Whilst the 2wd buggy has a 940mm tyre and no suspension travel limit. In addition, there is a 270 kg weight difference between the cars again favoring the buggy.” 

Taking it one step further, Toyota GAZOO Racing SA highlighted odd circle-shaped punctures on their tyres over the course of the Dakar. Has BFGoodrich found a cause of these punctures or where they solely linked to the rocky terrain? 

In response to the question, BFGoodrich said: “The Saudi terrain proved extremely rocky and the smaller AWD tyre combined with limited suspension travel highlighted the vehicle limitations.” In other words, the terrain and limited suspension travel could be the cause of these punctures. 

So, with the 2022 Dakar Rally on the horizon. Can we expect any changes? Well, BFGoodrich says they are “working with both manufacturers and sanctioning bodies” on a way forward. 

Having heard from Al-Attiyah among other drivers. They believe that tyres aren’t really to blame. So what do the two-wheel-drive buggies have that the 4x4 vehicles do not? 

Well, the buggies have a slightly wider wheel width, and an inflation-deflation system that they can control from the cockpit. Wait! There’s more… the buggies also have greater suspension travel compared to the 4x4 vehicles, which is a bonus on rocky terrain. 

Whilst it’s easy to place the blame on a tyre supplier, and in this case, it’s BFGoodrich. We need to remember that they are given a set of guidelines/regulations, and they construct the tyres and compounds around those set guidelines. So, if we solely blame the tyre supplier then we are completely misguided.  

Having said that it is rather deflating to put so much effort into building a race car only to have it lose valuable time and drop out of the fight due to punctures. So, moving away from it being a tyre supplier issue. There is only one thing it could be. Yes, you guessed right! There’s a clear regulatory issue, which solely rests with the FIA. 

There are currently talks ongoing behind the scenes between the ASO and the FIA regarding an increase in the size of tyres supplied to the 4x4 vehicles, but will we see the introduction of these tyres in 2022? That we do not know as yet. However, we have learned from a reliable source that 4x4 manufacturers/teams are currently modifying their vehicles to accommodate these “bigger tyres”, and with that being said we could get that confirmation closer to the time.

Will we see changes to the sporting regulations in 2022? That remains to be seen, but it’s clear that the ASO and the FIA acknowledge that the current regulations do in fact favour the two-wheel-drive buggies. 

Written By - Junaid Samodien

Lategan to undergo shoulder surgery following Dakar injury.

PHOTO CREDIT: Toyota GAZOO Racing South Africa.

Henk Lategan has confirmed that he will undergo shoulder surgery on Tuesday (today).

Having made their debut at the 2021 Dakar Rally, Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings had a lot to learn. And, coming from a cross country background, the South African pair has the necessary experience, but the Dakar is a whole different ball game with its long and challenging sandy dunes, etc. 

Lategan and Cummings overcame a few hurdles in the opening stages and brought home a superb second-place finish on stage three, immediately followed up with a third-place finish on stage four. A rather impressive result. However, a day later they would retire for the Dakar. 

PHOTO CREDIT: A.S.O/Dakar Rally.

The South African duo were forced to retire from the 2021 Dakar Rally after a heavy crash near the start of stage five. Henk and co-driver Brett were the third car to start the 456km-long stage between Saudi capital Riyadh and Al Qaisumah. Whilst they got off to a good start, they hit a ditch 19km's into the stage rolling their Toyota Hilux. 

Fortunately, the pair escaped any serious injuries. However, Lategan was flown to a hospital with a suspected collarbone fracture and was later released from the hospital. 

Henk confirmed on Monday evening that he will undergo surgery on his shoulder. 

"(I'm) going in for surgery on my shoulder," Lategan said. "The dislocation at Dakar is a bit worse than we first thought. Hopefully, I will be back in action soon!"

Written By: Junaid Samodien.

Dakar 2021: Stage 8 - Toyota and Honda make it 7 out of 9 .

 PHOTO CREDIT: A.S.O/Dakar

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

Motorbikes: 7th stage win for Honda

The stage from Sakaka to Neom today saw the battle between the KTM’s and Honda’s resume as Toby Price, Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo, and Joan Barreda Bort (Honda) all set the timesheets alight. 

Winning the stage yesterday, Ricky Brabec (Honda) struggled to keep the pace of the leading trio as Price held the slightest of margins over Cornejo Florimo and Barreda Bort. Finishing the stage yesterday, Cornejo Florimo led overall by 1 second over Price. 

With a new rule, seeing riders only allowed 6 tyres, Price had to patch his wheel in a very innovative way, whilst also setting blistering stage times. This is why the Australian is a 2-time Dakar winner. 

As the stage progressed, Brabec started to lose time as Cornejo Florimo overtook Price, leading the latter by a mere 7 seconds after waypoint 8 (PK307), extending his lead as the stage progressed. 

The Chilean would win the stage by 1:05 minutes, extending his lead over Price to 1:06. With only four stages remaining and Cornejo Florimo opening the stage tomorrow, the 2021 Dakar Rally is too close call. 

Xavier de Soultrait (HT Rally Raid Husqvarna) also saw a promising 2021 race and started today’s stage in 4th overall. However, medical assistance was deployed at the 267km mark as the rider crashed heavily and therefore had to retire from the race. 

After a horrible day yesterday, seeing him fall 3 times, damaging his bike in the process, and taring apart his knee guards, Ross Branch (Yamaha) held a steady pace as the top Yamaha today as the rest of the top 15 were spread widely in the standings. 

Branch finished 11th, some 9 minutes behind the stage winner. Whilst losing time to the leaders, the Botswana rider did manage to climb up two spots in the overall rankings as de Soultrait retired and Van Beveren fell behind by 15 seconds. 

Losing Franco Caimi due to a broken engine; the third of their five riders today, Yamaha only has Branch and Adrien Van Beveren left to fight for stage victories. 

Cars: 7th stage win for Toyota 

The first marathon section yesterday, saw Yazeed Al-Rahji (Toyota Overdrive) win the stage in the latter part as Stephane Peterhansel (X-Raid Mini JCW) evidently ran into problems, yet still managed to extend his overall lead over the Toyota of Nasser Al-Attiyah. 

Today, however, the Qatari launched onto the stage, leading both Mini’s and Al-Rahji by mere seconds. However, at the waypoint 4 (PK161), Peterhansel started edging Al-Attiyah once again, while Sainz slightly trailed the two upfront. 

The top-three would keep on trading times, staying within seconds from one another as Al Rajhi started to fall behind the likes of Cyril Despres (Abu Dhabi Racing).  

Towards the end of the special, Al-Attiyah distances Peterhansel, while Sainz stayed in a close second. Yet, the Toyota’s gap to Peterhansel was not sufficient to drastically reduce the overall lead. The Qatari won the stage by 52 seconds over Sainz, while cutting 3:03 minutes into Peterhansel’s lead. 

Opening the road once again tomorrow, Al-Attiyah will hope to cut down the 4:50 minute deficit to Peterhansel. 

Shameer Variawa and Giniel de Villiers also held their heads high today, constantly racing within and around the top 10 stage times. However, de Villiers' charge was hampered by punctures once again. 

Having reached the bivouac with 1 minute till cut-off at 1 am, Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) spent the night working on their car and started the stage 51st, but gained time as they also raced their way to 12th-place today.

Edited By: Junaid Samodien. 

Dakar2021: Stage 4 Analysis - Nail bitingly close in both the motorbike and car categories.

Ross Branch #18 on his way to fourth on stage four.
PHOTO CREDIT: Yamaha Racing.

After the drama from yesterday as well as the extremely close racing in the motorbike category, we were certainly very eager to kick of the stage today. This is what occurred: 

Honda back at it 

Winning yesterday’s stage, Toby Price (KTM) once again had the duty of opening the special today. It was therefore inevitable that the Australian would lose some time. However, the KTM rider lost just under 15 minutes today as he lost the lead early in the stage by means of navigational errors. 

It was then Joan Barreda Bort (Honda) who took over the lead, ready for a second 2021 stage win. After two difficult days, the Spaniard crossed the line, 6 minutes ahead of Yamaha rider, Ross Branch. 

Yesterday’s overall leader, Howes (BAS KTM) struggled with the conditions and would eventually lose the overall lead, thanks to a 13 minute deficit to Barreda. 

Overall, this means that the lead swaps once more, with Barreda now slotting into second; 15 seconds shy from the lead, which Xavier De Soultrait (Husqvarna) now holds. This is an extremely close margin. 

A further three minutes and 9 seconds sees Kevin Benavides (Honda) in third, followed by the consistent Yamaha of Branch, 1 minute further. 

Less than 5 minutes separate the top 5 

With Howes slotting into fifth place overall after today’s stage, the top 5 are separated by a mere 4:26 minutes. With key stages still remaining, it is anyone’s win to take, with KTM not far behind. 

Toyota powering ahead 

With a one-two position on yesterday’s stage, Toyota Gazoo Racing looked to have a tough day as Nasser Al-Attiyah and Henk Lategan would open the road for the others. 

Yet, this did not deter the leading Toyota’s as they once again dominated the stage, with Al-Attiyah and Lategan trading fastest times throughout the stage. Separated by a mere 44 seconds at 298km, everyone held their breath to see which Toyota would cross the finish line first. 

Yesterday, Al-Attiyah made it clear that he would attack Peterhansel on the 5th and 6th stage. With only five minutes between the leading duo, anything could happen. 

Yet, today, Al Attiyah already punched hard by winning his third consecutive stage and the fourth of the 2021 edition. The two X-Raid Mini’s of Peterhansel and Carlos Sainz fought back hard but just missed out on a stage win by a mere 11 seconds. This moved Lategan to third on the stage, with Sainz almost 3 minutes behind. 

Sainz did, however, threaten Al-Attiyah’s stage lead at seven points, but seemed to have backed off towards the finish. Is this perhaps a strategic plan to allow the Toyota’s to open the road tomorrow? 

Both Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) and Giniel de Villiers (Toyota Gazoo Racing) also drove at a steady pace, with both losing over 12 minutes to Al-Attiyah on the stage.

This means that Al-Attiyah would once again open the road tomorrow, a recipe that proved to work over the past three days. Just under 5 minutes now separate the Toyota and the Mini. It is anyone’s guess.

Dakar 2021: Wadi Ad-Dawasir loop - STAGE 3 ANALYSIS.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

The 630 km stage 3 today again saw drama unfold. With 9 stages remaining, a likely winner is far from being declared. Anything can still happen, with the general classifications in both the car and motorbike categories, changing on a daily basis. 

Stage 2 recap

Yesterday saw drama in the motorbike category as Yamaha’s Andrew Shorts retired. This, however, comes as a controversial matter as it quickly became clear that his and early leader, Toby Price’s KTM suffered problems after refuelling their bikes in the stage. 

Losing 32 minutes in the stage, Price discovered water in his fuel pump, a problem that sent Shorts into retirement.

Monster Energy Yamaha Rally Team has issued a statement following Andrew Short's withdrawal from the 2021 Dakar Rally.

"Subsequent inspection of the bike on its return to the bivouac identified the problem as contaminated fuel, with a significant amount of water found to be present in both the fuel tank and the fuel pump on Short's bike," the statement read.

"Water was also found in the fuel of Short's Monster Energy Yamaha teammate Franco Caimi when his fuel tank was drained after the stage. Fortunately for the Argentinian, the fuel contamination wasn't as severe as that of his teammate and he was able to complete the day's stage."

In order to ensure none of their other riders a similar fate, they opted to drain the fuel from the four remaining bikes and replace the fuel pumps. 

The team has also stated that they had lodged an official request to the FIA to freeze the results of stage 2 at Checkpoint 2. As it would allow Short to start the race today. However, the request was requested. 

Honda continues to impress, but KTM stamps its authority 

While Honda finished a strong first and second on stage yesterday, Kevin Benavides again took the lead for the manufacturer early on today. Losing 29 minutes to his winning team mate yesterday, Benavides had a point to prove. 

He was followed shortly by Price and Mattias Walkner (KTM). It would, however, be a bad day for the overall leading Honda’s of Joan Barreda Bort and Ricky Brabec as the two lost considerable time to the Husqvarna of Pablo Quintanilla and Ross Branch (Yamaha Monster Energy). Skyler Howes would take over the lead of the race. 

At 354km, Price took the lead from Benavides. A lead he would hold onto to win the stage by 1 minute and 16 seconds from Benavides. 

Branch holding a steady pace 

Ross Branch showcased a steady, yet consistent approach towards today’s stage. Losing about 13 minutes at every point, the Kalahari Ferrari kept his times in front of the overall leading trio of Quintanilla, Brabec, and Barreda Bort. Even more importantly, Branch came in ahead of his vastly experienced Yamaha teammate, Adrian van Beveren by a mere two seconds. 

However, a good showing by Skyler Howes (BAS Dakar KTM), Xavier de Soultrait (Rally Raid Husqvarna), Sam Sunderland (KTM Red Bull), Price and Benavides, would propel these five riders ahead of Branch in the overall standings. 

Toyota Gazoo Racing fighting back 

Winning stage 2, the South-African built Toyota Hiluxes were again charging through the special. 

It was South-African Dakar rookie, Henk Lategan, setting the timing sheets alight early on, followed shortly by Yazeed Al Rajhi (Toyota Overdrive), Sheikh Al Qassimi (Abu Dhabi Racing), Mathieu Serradori (Century Racing), Giniel De Villiers (Toyota Gazoo Racing). 

The tables, however, quickly turned as Carlos Sainz regained the lead at the 88km from Al Rajhi and Al-Attiyah, however, soon made a navigational error. Both Sainz and Al Rajhi then lost valuable time, with the former losing almost 32 minutes at the 183km mark; prompting Al-Attiyah and Sebastien Loeb (BRX) into the lead of the stage. 

Midway throughout the stage, Lategan fought back to slot in between Al-Attiyah and Stephane Peterhansel, while both De Villiers and Brian Baragwanath (Century Racing) were starting to lose quite a bit of time. 

Crossing the finish line, Al-Attiyah managed to take just over 4 minutes out of Peterhansel’s lead and a massive 31 minutes. Lategan, meanwhile finished the stage in second position, 2:27 behind his Gazoo Racing teammate. 

All this means that Peterhansel now leads the race, albeit by only five minutes from Al-Attiyah. With two back-to-back stage wins, might we see the Qatari close in even more in the coming days? Or will Sainz find a way to claw back his almost 34-minute deficit?

Dakar 2021: Stage 1 and Stage 2 analysis.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

Has Mini already won? 

Whilst the start of the rally saw a curb in top speed regulations, the X-raid Mini’s of Stephane Peterhansel and Carlos Sainz seemed t play the same tactics as their Red Bull motorbike counterparts, during the prologue. 

While Nasser Al-Attiyah (Toyota Gazoo Racing) took the lead on the prologue, the Mini’s quickly doused Toyota’s early celebratory mood. With the two mates almost in sync, the reigning champion (Sainz) took the lead, a mere 5 seconds ahead of Peterhansel. 

On today’s second stage, Peterhansel punched back, finishing just under 7 minutes ahead of Sainz. 

Yet, it was the Toyota of Al-Attiyah, who reigned supreme on the stage; taking 2:35 minutes out of Peterhansel’s overall lead and 9:17 from Sainz. 

All this means that the three favourites are now just less than 10 minutes away from one another, with Sainz trailing Peterhansel by 6:37 and Al-Attiyah trailing the leader by 9:14. 

While Mini started strongly, Toyota quickly punched back today. It will be anyone’s win. 

What about the other South-African Toyota Gazoo Racing Hiluxes? 

Henk Lategan, in his first-ever Dakar, seems to do well. The two-time SACCS champion is now in 16th position overall, trailing Peterhansel by 49 minutes. He is positioned just ahead of his more experienced, yet ever-cautious Dakar Legend teammate, Giniel De Villiers. The latter is now 18th, just over 52 minutes behind. Yet, as we know, De Villiers is never a quick starter; climbing up the leaderboard, stage by stage. 

Shameer Variawa did well on stage 1, finishing just ahead of Lategan in 12th. At the time of editing, Variawa does seem to struggle in the second stage, trailing the leaders by more than two hours. 

KTM stronger than ever? 

Having won 13 consecutive Dakar titles before Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy Honda) bested the KTM trio in 2020, the KTM squad seems to be back at the 2021 edition with new ambition. The 2016 and 2019 winner, Toby Price, was quick to state the obvious; being that KTM held back on the prologue stage so as to not open the tracks on the first stage of the rally. 

It certainly proved to pay off as the initial Honda pace setters of Brabec and Joan Barreda Bort got lost, earning Price the lead of the rally. 

The second stage of the rally would, unfortunately, swing the favour back in the hands of the Honda’s as Barreda Bort seized the opportunity of a later start to retake the lead for the manufacturer. Brabec finished second and now sits just under 7 minutes behind. 

The KTM of Mattias Walkner came to a halt early in the stage, with the Austrian eventually losing almost two hours and a half. Sam Sunderland lost exactly 23 minutes today, while Price lost even more at 32 minutes. 

KTM might have won 13 consecutive titles, yet the last few years proved to be more of a daunting task in keeping up with appearances. With Yamaha and Husqvarna also being in the mix, will we again see a game of cat and mouse right up until the end? 

We certainly think so… 

The “Kalahari Ferrari” had us worried, but not for long 

Ross Branch (Monster Energy Yamaha) showed us his capabilities during the prologue; taking into account that this is only his third ever Dakar. The Botswanian then seemed to struggle during the first stage, losing valuable time and eventually finishing 12th. 

But, with the ever-present smile on his face, Branch raced ahead during the second stage, threatening the leaders of the stage. 

He would eventually finish today’s stage in fourth (at the time of typing this article), moving up to third overall as the leading Yamaha rider, 6:37 shy of the lead. 

With 10 stages remaining, anything can still happen. Yet, Branch has already showcased his performance in 2020. A stage victory might well be in reach, but can we expect even more? 

We might only be in the second stage of this years’ Dakar, but both the car and motorbike categories are already lighting up and our Southern-African competitors are doing us proud. 

Al-Attiyah/Baumel to head field for DAKAR 2021 STAGE 1.

PHOTO CREDIT: Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa.

Toyota GAZOO Racing's Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel topped the short, sharp 2021 Dakar Rally prologue in their South African-built Toyota Hilux. Their time was matched by Brian Baragwanath and Taye Perry, in a Century Racing CR-6 buggy, which is also built in South Africa. 

“We are very pleased with Nasser and Mathieu setting the fastest time. They’ve proven before that they are happy to attack from the front,” TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Team Principal, Glyn Hall, said after the 11 km prologue. 

“Henk and Brett did exactly what we had hoped they’d do – a solid performance that places them in a good position for Stage 1.”

Dakar debutants Henk Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings, posted a time just 15 seconds slower than that of the leaders, placing them in 7th place for the start of Stage 1 tomorrow.

Whilst teammates Giniel de Villiers and co-driver Alex Haro Bravo suffered a throttle response problem at the start of the prologue stage and lost some time resetting the system. They managed to restrict their time loss to 20 seconds despite the problem but will be starting Stage 1 in 19th place – which means De Villiers will have to deal with more dust and scattered tracks than he would have liked.

The final car in the Toyota GAZOO Racing SA team is that of Shameer Variawa and co-driver Dennis Murphy. The pair’s prologue time was 33 seconds off the pace. They’ll be starting as the 26th car on the road.

Stage 1 is a 622 km special that comprises a 345 km liaison, and a timed section of 277 km. The route will see the crews tackle sandy tracks, strewn with rocks in places. Protecting the tyres will be key in these conditions.

Dakar 2021: Tactical warfare?

PHOTO CREDIT: Giniel de Villiers/Toyota GAZOO Racing South Africa.

Written By: Franco Theron - NamWheels

Motorsport enthusiasts could again sigh in relief as the 2021- and second Saudi-based Dakar Rally got underway today with the Prologue. Not relevant to the end result itself, the prologue saw competitors test themselves against one another as well as position themselves for the road order of the first official stage on 3 January 2021. 

With the 2021 edition seeing multiple regulation changes in both the motorbike and car categories, competitors and teams are already hinting towards tactical warfare. 

Yet, Southern-Africans already have reason to smile…

Motorbike category: 

With tyre regulations being changed and limited in a bid to ensure safer and slower riding, the motorbike competitors will now be more hesitant to go full-throttle throughout the whole of every stage. 

Neither the less,  2020 Dakar victor and the first person to break the dominance of the Red Bull KTM team, Ricky Brabec held nothing back. Storming into the Jeddah-based prologue, the American recorded the fastest time; six seconds faster than his Monster Energy Honda teammate, Joan Barreda Bort. 

Ross Branch, also known as the Kalahari Ferrari, who joined the Monster Energy Yamaha squad for 2021, recorded the fourth-fastest time, some 14 seconds behind Brabec. The Botswanian is highly pipped to take at least one stage victory, if not challenging for overall victory. 

Car category: 

The car category flamed up with news that new FIA Cross Country regulations have imposed speed restrictions on the T1 and T2 classes in a bid to cater for a more level playing field. Toyota, X-Raid and Prodrive competitors will therefore be allowed to race at 180km/h, while T3, T4, and T5 competitors will be allowed to race at 130km/h. 

While three-time and 2020 winner, Carlos Sainz Snr (X-Raid Mini) hinted the overall fight to be between the X-raid Mini’s and the Toyota’s. Glyn Hall, Team Principal of Toyota GAZOO Racing South Africa welcomed these terms; stating that his team will now have a better opportunity to keep the Mini’s within their reach. 

While the buggies of the Prodrive BRX’s and X-Raid Mini’s may only be two-wheel-drive, compared to the four-wheel-drive Toyota’s, the buggies do tend to have a speed and power advantage. 

Accordingly, one of the 2021 favourites, Nasser Al-Attiyah (Toyota) took to the prologue today, recording the fastest time. However, the time was soon matched by the new South-African pairing of Brian Baragwanath and Taye Perry (Century Racing). 

While this means that Al-Attiyah will open the tracks, the X-Raid Mini’s of Stephane Peterhansel crossed the finish line in 14th place, while Sainz recorded the 28th fastest time. Yet, the latter stated to have had a puncture. 

Was this strategic or does Toyota’s new-found trust in their tyre capabilities prove to be the determining factor for 2021? Or are the X-Raid team playing tactical motorsport chess, knowing that Al-Attiyah would now have to open the road? 

At the time of typing, the stage times were so extremely close, that all of the top 42 competitors, crossed the finish line within one minute from another. 

Henk Lategan, in his first Dakar, recorded the seventh fastest time, while Giniel de Villiers came in 20th. 

Sebastien Loeb, in the new Prodrive, built BRX Hunter also recorded the 11th fastest time, with team-mate, Nani Roma coming in 15th. 

While it is still early days, tactics already seem to be the order of the day. Not much could be said about performance, as all teams are still cautiously finding their… wheels, whilst not giving away too much to their competitors. 

However, with the 277km stage from Jeddah to Bisha now within reach, we can be certain of a highly competitive 12 stages.