Administrative checks & scrutineering
The countdown has really started
Same scenery, same sunshine but bigger names for day two of scrutineering. The Euromilhoes Lisboa-Dakar 2006 welcomed some of the race favourites that will be taking off on Saturday. Last year’s bike winner, Cyril Despres showed up in spectacular fashion on his brand new KTM. Just a few minutes later, the whole Volkswagen armada proudly presented their Race Touareg 2. It was Showtime in Lisbon!
After the first 250 or so competitors yesterday, scrutineering went on in the Belem Cultural Centre. With the start date moving closer, even more fans had gathered to see all these “magnificent men” and women on their, sometimes, “funny” machines. The show was on, late in the afternoon, when the four KTM-Gauloises riders drove their bikes into the parking lot. The men in blue will certainly hope to be just as cheerful on the Lac Rose podium in just over two weeks time. Title holder Cyril Despres (KTM – n°1) indeed had a big smile on his face delighted by his new machine and his race preparation. “I’m delighted to be here and impatient to start the race. We have a brand new team set for victory and nothing else. Concerning myself, I want to do what I do best: riding a bike. I’ll take it day by day but my goal is really to claim victory.” Victory on the mind of Despres but also of his new team mate Isidre Esteve (KTM – n°3) who decided to leave KTM-Repsol to join the French team with high expectations. “The goal is to win. I’m lucky enough to have David Casteu as a support rider and it really is a luxury because he’s a very fast biker”. Indeed the Spaniard will be counting on another new recruit while Despres will have his mate Michel Gau as his “water carrier”.
Earlier in the day, their main rivals from the KTM-Repsol team had finally completed their scrutineering session with the technical checks on the same bikes that started last year’s event. And on one of those KTMs will be late entry Andy Caldecott (KTM – n°10), 6th of the previous edition and without enough sponsors to start this one, until… “Jordi called me at home to tell me that Jordi Duran had injured himself and asked me if I was interested in joining the team for the Dakar. I couldn’t believe it and it really feels great to be back, especially in a top team”. Despite starting the race as a support rider for Coma, Caldecott could surprise quite a few followers. Exactly like the two very promising Americans of the KTM-Red Bull team: Chris Blais (KTM – n°9) and Andy Grider (KTM – n°23). “I hope to make it on the podium in Dakar. I know a lot more about the race and have gained in experience”, explained Blais, a rookie last year who managed to finish 9th of the event.
In the car category, the biggest moment of the day was definitely the unveiling of the brand new Volkswagen Race Touareg 2. Despite discovering the Dakar for the very first time, the German team’s star driver appeared to be Mister Carlos Sainz (VW – n°307), seeing the crowd of journalists surrounding the two-time WRC World champion. The Spaniard came with wife Reyes and his three children and didn’t miss out on the slightest detail of this new chapter of his life. “I have a lot of respect for this event. To compete in such a race is very exciting because I don’t yet know what to expect. The main difficulty for me comes from the different types of terrain we’ll have to discover. I’m really here to learn”.
And Sainz will certainly have a lot to learn from his prestigious team mates including two previous winners: Jutta Kleinschmidt (VW – n°303) and Bruno Saby (VW – n°301)… “I hope this Dakar will be difficult, because I’m normally better when it’s tough, insisted Germany’s Kleinschmidt. If you want me to be a happy woman: give me dunes, dunes and even more dunes”. The 2001 winner will therefore have to wait until Mauritania to really try and make a difference and see what the VW can do against the Mitsubishi squad. Just like Kleinschmidt, South African team mate Giniel De Villiers (VW – n°305) looked eager to really test his vehicle. “Our car is a lot better than the previous one although the Mitsubishi’s have also improved. It should therefore be a great race because the gap has probably never been so slim between the two teams. Mitsubishi will no longer be able to make a difference on one or two stages and then build on their lead.”
Indeed the battle promises to be spectacular and USA’s Robby Gordon (HUM – 335) will be hoping not to be too far behind. The American entered the scrutineering parking lot full blast ahead in his very impressive Hummer. And according to him: “This time or next time: we want to win this race. We’re not here to play.”
The truck race should also be mouth-watering. The two main favourite teams went through scrutineering today: Kamaz and their leading drivers Firdaus Kabirov (KAM – n°500), winner of the previous event and multiple Dakar champion Vladimir Tchaguine (KAM – n°508), as well as the DAF trucks of the De Rooy family… But a question mark remained concerning the Dutch team who aren’t yet sure of being able to start the rally on Saturday. They indeed need the FIA to send them a proper licence to allow them to start the event. The clockwork is on for the big blue trucks and only tomorrow will tell if they can hope to head to Portimao on New Year’s Eve for stage 1 of the Dakar.
Scrutineering carries on tomorrow for its third and final day. The many Portuguese fans will be able to discover car title holder Stephane Peterhansel alongside his Mitsubishi team mates, but also the new Schlesser buggies and Yamaha biker David Frétigné among many others.