Dakar: BMW ready to shake up VW

Now is the time to confirm. Last year, the Volkswagen team achieved recognition by putting a diesel vehicle on the top step of the Dakar podium for the first time. Giniel De Villiers, who perfectly represents the winning compromise between virtuosity, performance and caution at high speed, awarded himself this honor at the end of a race by elimination which notably condemned his teammate Carlos Sainz three days from the finish, after winning 6 special stages! Despite the fall of the Matador, Volkswagen placed another Race Touareg with Mark Miller on the podium, in 2nd position. However, this show of force in no way guarantees a walk in the park on the second South American edition of the Dakar, which begins tomorrow.

Within the German firm, the abundance of goods could turn into a game of massacre. The transfer of the fiery Nasser Al Attiyah has created a situation of competition which invites excellence, but which can also encourage mistakes. On the Rally Dos Sertoes, then on the Silk Way Rally, the Qatari driver led at full speed until the day before the finish. But the rush each time led him to go off the track, benefiting his rival for the title, Carlos Sainz. In a race format twice as long, the scenario of a massacre cannot be ruled out! No one knows if Giniel De Villiers will still be best placed to win the bet.

The withdrawal of Mitsubishi could in fact have been seen, from VW's side, as the elimination at little cost of its most threatening opponent. Instead, the game of musical chairs completely turned things upside down, and boosted the chances of the BMW X3. By securing the services of Stéphane Peterhansel and Nani Roma, the X-Raid team gained two exceptional drivers, and above all two preparers who, it seems, succeeded in transforming the car through training sessions. ?tests and adjustments. More reliable, more stable, the X3 could compete with the Race Touareg for longer than in 2009 in Argentina and Chile. X-Raid can also count on the presence of Guerlain Chicherit... if he manages to channel his enthusiasm behind the wheel.

If the superiority of diesel technology over gasoline seems certain to most of the players, Robby Gordon does not see it that way. The American gave proof on the ground that his talent was not limited to publicity effects, by finishing on the podium at the last Dakar. His temperament will push him to seek even better! Finally, the Mitsubishi Lancers, which left the Dakar through the back door, return with more modest ambitions, but perhaps a new destiny. In the meantime, they were bought by the Marseillais Nicolas Misslin, then stripped of their diesel engines for gasoline engines more suited to the means of the structure. The Portuguese Carlos Sousa and the Argentinian Orlando Terranova were tasked with securing places of honor.