Mathieu Baumel reveals his new life: “It’s a bad patch, but it will unlock other things”

Nearly three weeks after a dramatic road accident in Reims, the French co-driver gives us an exclusive, unvarnished account. His life has not been the same since January 29, and he has come a long way. But the athlete's mentality has taken over and he has already set himself the goal of participating in the Dakar 2026.

Published 18/02/2025 à 10:11

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Mathieu Baumel reveals his new life: "It's a bad patch, but it will unlock other things"

Report from issue 2500 of AUTOhebdo, available in digital and Wednesday on newsstands.

It was just like any other February day. As a true sports lover, Mathieu Baumel started by following the first stage of the Rally from Sweden. "What Adrien is doing is not bad. (Fourmaux), on ice too, it’s not easy”, he enthuses, before switching on the TV so as not to miss the Alpine Skiing World Championships. That evening, Valentine's Day, he will have roses delivered for his wife Barbara. The co-pilot would have preferred to go and get the bouquet himself, but that is impossible for him. He has been immobilized for more than two weeks at the Reims University Hospital (Marne), where he was admitted as an emergency on Wednesday, January 29.

There is not much to say about what happened on the Reims ring road, on the sidelines of the start of the Monte-Carlo Historique. It is not in Mathieu Baumel's character to dwell on the past. He was assisting a rally crew that had broken down on the emergency lane when he was mowed down by a Renault Clio. The driver was a 73-year-old lady blinded by a