T3 World Cup winners, Gutiérrez-Cazalet in rally-raid history

She had broken the house by being the first woman to win a Dakar special since Jutta Kleinschmidt last winter. Cristina Gutiérrez has since continued her progression, first by being associated with Sébastien Loeb in Extreme E (2nd in the championship before the final scheduled for December) then by leading a Rally Raid World Cup season in class T3 (modified SSV).

¡Gracias for all! This is the title we llevamos at home.. 🇪🇸

Thanks to François Cazalet for serving as an exceptional copilot. Al team @Red Bull Off-Road Junior. A mis patrocinadores y familia… y sobre todo, a la aficion.
Me animáis día a día a seguir haciendo historia😊 pic.twitter.com/whTZnm4D10

— Cristina Gutiérrez (@crisgutierrez) November 11, 2021

The Spaniard went through all the emotions. The victory at home during the Rally of Andalusia, in front of his comrades from Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team followed by a double in Kazakhstan, but also a serious injury during this same event.

The trained dentist had shown great courage. A poorly negotiated compression 200 km from the goal blocked his back. In tears, she nevertheless managed to reach the finish line, still in the lead. The doctors' verdict was final: two broken vertebrae and a mandatory two-month rest period.

Back in great shape this fall, she finished the Rallye du Maroc in third place, before gaining an additional rank at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. A score sufficient to seal the title before Rally Ha'il (Saudi Arabia) ahead of Fernando Alvarez.

“It’s something that the whole team (managed by Overdrive) research for three years, said the 30-year-old pilot. It's a dream come true, something that makes me crazy and I dedicate to everyone who supported me in a year as complicated as this, with an injury as serious as the one in Kazakhstan. Thanks to my family and friends. To all those who believed in me from the beginning: I have only words of gratitude, I owe them everything because they know what it is, what they bring to me. »

Cristina Gutiérrez also owes this title to a Frenchman. François Cazalet is a browser like no other. The thirty-year-old Béarnais juggles between the notebook and the tractor; his job is farmer on the family farm ! A spirited co-driver, François Cazalet allowed his neighbor from across the Pyrenees to take a step forward, both in peace and in knowledge of the terrain. They will logically be among the favorites in the T3 category at the 2022 Dakar, which will begin on January 2 in Ha'il.