Carlos Sainz clinched his fourth Dakar Rally title, with a fourth manufacturer, in a historic maiden victory for Audi…
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Motorsport fans might recall a video on YouTube a few years back in which the young F1 prospect Carlos Sainz Jr – who was signed with Red Bull’s junior outfit Toro Rosso – was pitted against his father, WRC legend Carlos Sainz. The Red Bull film crew had visited the Sainz family ranch just outside Madrid and the younger Carlos was set to show up his dad in buggies on an off-road course on the estate. The old man won, with the two joking at the end about a follow-up race on asphalt.
After Sainz Jr was signed to the Renault F1 team, a promotional video was released that featured both men, this time coaching Mark Webber and David Coulthard in Clio RS rally cars before the two F1 alumni were to do battle on the Sainz ranch. What was immediately apparent afterwards was that although Carlos Jr’s career was built on his prowess around circuits, he was equally at home on dirt. His father is a World Rally Champion after all.
Affectionately known as ‘El Matador’ to fans the world over, the 61-year-old held the WRC drivers’ title in 1990 and 1992, along with four runner-up finishes and contributions to the constructors’ titles of Lancia, Subaru, Ford, Citroën and Toyota. This portfolio, although very impressive, is perhaps not his greatest achievement. His string of fast, consistent and calculated performances in the Dakar Rally for the past two decades are arguably more eyebrow-raising. Most recently he claimed his fourth Dakar crown and became the oldest driver to take overall victory. Junior and Senior would speak and strategise before and after each stage, which contributed to Carlos Sr’s most dominant Dakar performance ever.
Four Rings to Rule Them All
Audi’s drive for motorsport dominance is relentless. Starting with a loophole in the World Rally Championship’s Group B ruleset, the introduction of the Quattro all-wheel-drive system would change rallying forever and many competitive rally cars since have been all-wheel drive. Before Group B was abolished, the company had set its sights on the Pikes Peak Hill Climb in Colorado, setting a course record with Michèle Mouton driving the Sport Quattro in 1985. At the end of the 1986 WRC season, with no place for the Sport Quattro S1 E2 to compete, Pikes Peak would once again be the company’s target for 1987, this time with Walter Röhrl at the wheel.
Related: Hyundai Returning to Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
After a brief foray into the American TransAm series in 1988 (after which the Audi 200 was banned for being too fast), Audi took on the IMSA GT series with the 90 GTO in 1989 before returning home to race in the original DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft). The team secured wins in 1991 and 1992 before focusing its efforts on the increasingly popular SuperTouring formula in 1993, famously winning the 1996 British Touring Car Championship with the Quattro-equipped A4.
Audi’s most significant successes in motorsport began at the 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans, in which the R8R made the podium on debut. Audi would stamp its authority on the event, winning 13 times from 2000 to 2014, and paved the way for diesel racecars when the R10 TDI won on debut in 2006, and for hybrid racecars with the R18 TDI Ultra. It came as no surprise that Audi’s effort at Dakar would be a pioneering one, as the organisers Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) teamed up with the world motorsport governing body FIA to introduce a new T1-E category, created to promote vehicles using alternative energies. Audi Sport immediately announced it would contest the Dakar from 2022 onward, with a formidable driver line-up comprising three-time winner Carlos Sainz, 14-time winner Frenchman Stéphane Peterhansel, and Swedish former World Rallycross and DTM champion Mattias Ekström.
After a promising debut at Dakar in 2022 for the partially electric RS Q e-tron, in which they won four stages (two by Sainz and one apiece by Peterhansel and Ekström) Audi started strong at the 2023 event as Ekström and Sainz were the fastest finishers on the first two stages, but bad crashes for Peterhansel (stage 6) and Sainz (6 and 9) left the Swede facing the competition alone and he finished 14th overall.
Glory in 2024
With an especially disappointing previous outing at Dakar, this year’s event was a crucial one for Team Audi Sport as expectations for the team’s potential foray into F1 continued to grow. Ekström and Peterhansel once again started off strong, with wins at the prologue and stage 2, respectively. However, it was El Matador who proved the ultimate tactician. He opted to start the 48-hour marathon on stage 6, with plenty of tracks to follow. With competitors forced to camp at one of the eight bivouacs along the route at 16:00 Saudi time after part 1 of stage 6, with no communication and support from their teams, it wasn’t only ultimate pace that determined the stage finish, but rather a cool head.
In the end, despite not winning a single stage this year, overall honours went to Sainz, whose consistency allowed him to command the lead by the end of that crucial sixth stage.
“I’m proud, relieved and especially happy obviously for what he has achieved, it’s incredible. At his age, and with this project that was his dream, he made it happen,” said Carlos Jr.
“The result of the payback for long and hard work. Especially last year, it was a very tough experience for us all. It’s one of the most complex [forms] of racing that we’ve ever done. Carlos is a legend. I could learn so many things from him and I think all the team could do the same. It’s really an honour for me and all the team to work with him,” added Audi Sport managing director Rolf Michl.
“To be here at my age and to stay at the level, you need to do a lot of work beforehand. It doesn’t just come like that. It shows that when you work hard, normally it pays off. It’s not enough to be young, you have to prove yourself,” concluded Sainz.
South African Efforts
In the Rally 2 category of the Bike race, Bradley Cox, son of South African motorsport legend Alfie Cox, put in a massive effort. Tipped as one to watch at Dakar, the 25-year-old led his class early on in this year’s race and fought his way to a very respectable third in Rally 2, placing him 13th overall.
After his impressive 2023 win in the Original by Motul class, in which riders are unassisted, Charan Moore would finish Rally 2 this year in ninth place overall and 21st in the bike standings. Stuart Gregory finished 62nd overall, with Michael Doherty pulling out after stage 2.
Related: A Look at Who Will Rival SA Teams at the Dakar
Defending Champions Toyota Gazoo Racing had a fleet of Hiluxes contesting the T1+ category and looking for an overall win. South Africans Guy Botterill and co-driver Brett Cummings finished fifth in class, ahead of compatriots Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy. Teenage Saood Variawa finished 16th overall in the car standings.
The Ford M-Sport Ranger team of Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer managed 28th in the T1+ Class. Driving the latest version of the Century Racing CR, Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer finished 24th in class.
Starting the 2024 Dakar strong, De Villiers was running as high as third overall after stage 1 but dropped out of serious contention shortly thereafter, while Baragwanath was second fastest overall on stage 10. In the Classic category, Katherine Lovemore and co-driver Stephen Lovemore managed to bring their Toyota Land Cruiser 80 home in 48th position, not too far ahead of Adriaan and Riaan Botma. With Botma Jr as the driver and his father as co-driver, the pair finished 53rd in class.
