CHABOT Ronan FRA 06/10/1966 179 cm 68 kg

PILLOT Gilles FRA 16/05/1961 185 cm 80 kg

Vehicle

MODEL	MAKE
LAND CRUISER	TOYOTA

RANKING

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15
Scratch	45	77	37	29	27	28	30	31	25	31	-	32	39	80
Stage	45	77	37	29	27	27	29	31	24	30	-	31	39	80	-	-
Overall	45	72	42	37	28	23	23	21	21	22	-	17	17	19	-	-

Ronan Chabot: «The harder it is, the better our chances will be»

Will it finally happen this year? Each year, the class win on «the biggest rally-raid» seems to slip through the fingers of the official Toyota France team of Chabot and Pillot. In 2007, these very serious contenders for the T2 class win, who had won the 2005 world rally-raid championship in T2, saw their chances vanish in the African sand just three days before the finish. But for the 2009 edition, the two ferocious competitors demonstrate absolute serenity. «This is the seventh year that we have been a team, we have the same mechanic, the same program and now we have the maturity and a certain stability», declares Ronan Chabot. «The car has evolved while not being a big change, it does better shock absorbers.’

In South America, the two are on known ground. They won the production class in the 2005 Rally of Argentina. Ronan Chabot has some fond memories. «There were some memorable dunes that were not like those in Africa. We were surprised by the diversity of the scenery.»

Even though Ronan and Gilles are prudent when it comes to their chances of an eventual victory they are aware of the «hazards» of a race like the Dakar, the driver and co-driver hope for « a tough route». « the harder it is, the better our chances will be, because, in production, while we are not as fast as the leaders, we can be very consistent», says Ronan Chabot. The driver knows he will be able to count on a co-driver who has experience with the most difficult of race conditions because Gilles Pillot has taken part in 18 Dakars, including ten on a motorcycle.

Dakar start photos on line: www.maindruphoto.com

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