Hectic first race for the Alonso-Coma duo at the Lichtenburg 400

After a tough preparation in Namibia and Poland, Fernando Alonso and Marc Coma faced a competitive environment for the first time at the Lichtenburg 400 in South Africa. The residents of Toyota Hilux développé par le Toyota Gazoo Racing SA were engaged to continue training for a potential, and expected, presence at the 2020 Dakar in Saudi Arabia.

Third in the Prologue behind the Toyota Hilux of Henk Lategan and Giniel de Villiers, the Spanish duo then had a complicated first day of racing with a rollover after 27 km. “ Unfortunately the day was a bit of a nightmare for us, admits the double world champion F1.

In the morning we rolled over and broke the windshield, which affected our visibility. So we had to remove it. We walked the rest of the loop with our goggles on, in the dust behind all the cars. For the second loop, the organizers allowed us to ride in front, with a clear field. »

But a bird hitting the windshield decided otherwise, forcing Alonso and Coma to move with difficulty with their Hilux. “I almost drove 200 kilometers with one hand on the windshield and the other on the steering wheel, describes Alonso. It wasn't the best day for us, but we were able to do more miles in the Hilux and it's nice to be able to experience these things before moving on to bigger races. »

Setbacks which indeed offer a real experience to the former pilot Ferrari before tackling in particular the Rally of Morocco (October 3 – 9). “We are accelerating the discovery phase for one of the best racing drivers the world has ever seen in a discipline he has never experienced before, explains Glyn Hall, Team Principal of Toyota Gazoo Racing SA.

With just five months to prepare for one of the toughest races in motorsport (the Dakar), we have an incredible task ahead. In the prologue we saw that Fernando could keep up with the best drivers in South Africa. Competing at this level in terms of speed, and with such a steep learning curve, we expected some setbacks.

This is exactly the kind of experience they need so they won't be surprised if it happens during the big race. The determination that Fernando and Marc showed today is impressive. »

For the record, the Lichtenburg 400 was won by Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy.