N° 300 - TEAM VOLKSWAGEN MOTORSPORT II
- DE VILLIERS
- Giniel
- ZAF
- 25/03/1972
|
- VON ZITZEWITZ
- Dirk
- DEU
|
| MODEL |
MAKE |
| Race Touareg 2 |
VOLKSWAGEN |
|
|
| |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
13 |
14 |
|
| Scratch |
5
|
8
|
32
|
5
|
17
|
8
|
6
|
4
|
3
|
11
|
3
|
9
|
6
|
6
|
| Stage |
5
|
8
|
31
|
5
|
17
|
8
|
6
|
4
|
3
|
11
|
3
|
9
|
6
|
6
|
-
|
| Overall |
5
|
6
|
22
|
20
|
18
|
16
|
12
|
9
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
-
|
"Less pressure, same hunger"
Giniel De Villiers’ progression on the Dakar could only take him to glory on the World’s most prestigious off-road rally. From a very promising 5th spot for his first appearance back in 2003 in a NIssan, the South African never stopped improving. 4th in 2005, runner-up the following year for his first experience in a Volkswagen, he finally climbed on the highest step of the podium for the first visit of the Dakar on South American soil.
"To win the Dakar, you have to do as few mistakes as possible but you also need to be lucky", said at the time De Villiers who has had his lot of upsets, notably suffering a mechanical disaster while he was leading the 2007 Dakar after 9 days. Last year in Argentina and Chile he made the best of his experience, eventually taking command of the race with three stages to go when his team mate Carlos Sainz crashed out of the rally.
For this 32nd edition of the event, the title holder remains as hungry as ever: “It’s nice to start as the defending champion. We actually have less pressure this year but the same hunger. Last year the pressure was on us, on all the Volkswagen team. I was happy to be the one”. The slight difference for this year is that Volkswagen will show up with even more contenders. Carlos Sainz dreams of fulfilling his ultimate challenge, the Dakar, close to 20 years after his last WRC title. Concerning Nasser Al Attiyah, the team’s new recruit, he made the switch from BMW to have the best chances on his side to finally win the rally. “Until now, there is no number 1. Carlos Sainz wants the race as badly as us and so does Nasser (Al Attiyah). But the truth is that there is less pressure on us and more on them. The difference is that I’m maybe more relaxed”. And a lot fitter. Despite the glory, De Villiers indeed suffered a real physical nightmare during his 2009 Dakar, having to deal with a slipped disc. “I went through surgery in April and I’m now fully recovered. Ready to keep my number one position!”
Dakar start photos on line: www.maindruphoto.com