N°225 Car FORD M-SPORT

CARLOS SAINZ

(esp) Born on 12/04/1962 1.79m / 80kg

Hobbies

Fútbol, golf, squash (campeón de España en 1978), tenis, esquí

Sponsors

Red Bull

2024: Coche/ 1º
2023: Coche/Abandono en la etapa 10 (1 victoria de etapa)
2022: Coche/12º (2 victorias de etapa)
2021: Coche/ 3º (3 victorias de etapa)
2020: Coche/ 1º (4 victorias de etapa)
2019: Coche/ 13º (1 victoria de etapa)
2018: Coche/ 1º (2 victorias de etapa)
2017: Coche/ Abandono en la 4ª etapa
2016: Coche/ Abandono en la 10º etapa (2 victorias de etapa)
2015: Coche/ Abandono en la 5ª etapa
2014: Coche/ Abandono en la 10ª etapa (2 victorias de etapa)
2013: Coche/ Abandono en la etapa 6 (1 victoria de etapa)
2011: Coche/ 3º (7 victorias de etapa)
2010: Coche/ 1º (2 victorias de etapa)
2009: Coche/Abandono en la 12ª etapa (6 victorias de etapa)
2007: Coche/ 9º (5 victorias de etapa)
2006: Coche/ 11º (4 victorias de etapa)

2024: Rally Raid de Portugal (4º) / Rally de Marruecos (1 victoria de etapa)
2023: 3º en la Baja Aragón (categoría Open); 22º en el Rally de Marruecos
2022: 1º en el Rally de Marruecos (categoría Open); 3º en la Extreme E
2021: 2º en el Rally Andalucía; 7º en la Extreme E
2020: 2º en el Rally Andalucía
2019: 2º en el Rally de Marruecos
2018: 26º en el Rally de Marruecos
2010: 1º en el Silk Way Rally (2 victorias de etapa, Volkswagen Race Touareg 2)
2009: 1º en el Rally dos Sertoes y 1º en el Silk Way Rally (6 victorias de etapa, Volkswagen Race Touareg 2)
2008: 1º del Rally Central Europeo y 14º en las 24 horas de Nürburgring
2007: Campeón de la Copa del Mundo de Rallies Cross Country; 2º en el UAE Desert Challenge, 2º en el Rally de Marruecos y 2º en el UAE Rally (5 victorias de etapa, Volkswagen Race Touareg)
2005: 3º en la Baja Portalegre
2003: 3º en el Campeonato del Mundo de Rallies WRC
2002: 3º en el Campeonato del Mundo de Rallies WRC
1997: 1º en la Carrera de Campeones
1991, 1994, 1995 y 1998: Subcampeón del Mundo de Rallies WRC
1990 y 1992: Campeón del Mundo de Rallies WRC

“A very tough race in the first year of a project”

CREW FACTS

C.S.

  • Carlos Sainz has not lost any of his legendary competitive drive. The two-time world rally champion (1990 and 1992) marked an era in the discipline and is among the references of the Dakar Rally, in which he debuted in 2006 in Africa.
  • His sporting career began far from the world of motorsport: he became the Spanish squash champion at 16 years of age.
  • His attention to detail and perfection are two characteristics that have defined him since he started rallying in the 1980 Shalymar in a Renault 5 TS.
  • This competitive spirit endeared him to a generation of fans with his two WRC titles and 26 victories. So much so that, in a vote conducted by the official World Cup website in 2020, fans worldwide voted him the best ever. The Madrid-born driver made history in 2024, with Audi becoming the first to win the Dakar with an electric-powered vehicle. His victory added to an unparalleled resume, with four Touareg trophies with four different manufacturers (2010 with Volkswagen, 2018 with Peugeot, 2020 with MINI). In 2025, he will try to do it with a fifth, Ford, with whom he has already won a stage in the most recent Morocco Rally.

L.C.

  • Lucas Cruz never imagined that he would compete alongside one of his childhood idols, let alone contribute to no less than four Dakar triumphs by his side.
  • But the truth is that the destiny of this qualified computer engineer and co-driver led him to enter rallying at the age of 20 when an acquaintance from his father's garage was left without a navigator for a local rally and asked him to join him.
  • The opportunity of a lifetime came four years later, when he entered - ‘on the rebound’, as he confesses - in the programme for promising young drivers initiated by Carlos Sainz and Peugeot. He made his Dakar Rally debut in 2001 and co-drove with Nani Roma in two editions. But in 2009, he received a call from Sainz to join him at Volkswagen
  • In their first Dakar together, they became the first Spani

AMBITION 2025

C.S.: “The victory in the last Dakar was historic, and I'm still overjoyed to have done it, but it's in the past, and now I'm concentrating on the next edition, where I'm looking forward to competing with a new brand and a new project. When I decided to go with Ford M-Sport, the presence of Malcolm Wilson was undoubtedly of great importance, as I have an excellent relationship with him. We worked together on two previous occasions (1996-1997 and 2000-2002). In the end, when I put things in perspective at this stage of my racing career, they either compensate me or they don't. I am in a highly motivated team: a Malcolm who has not changed anything, with great enthusiasm and desire for this project, and a Ford with great determination because this is one of his important projects, 100% factory.”

“Everyone is extremely motivated, although it is true that the Dakar is a demanding race and in the first year of a project, no matter how many tests you do, you always pay for the fact that the car doesn't have the kilometres and the experience that others who have already raced before have. It's difficult to say where everyone will be because we went to Morocco with the performance set-ups that will debut in 2025, and the others were on the old set-ups. But I'm confident that it will be more equal than ever. We saw that it will be pretty even between Toyota, Dacia, Mini, and us, and it should be a very entertaining Dakar. We will have to take it day by day, see where we are, what we are finding and how competitive we are.”

L.C.: “What we did last January was not impossible but difficult to achieve. It is something to be delighted about because it was a highly complex and innovative project. In addition, this is the fourth brand with which we have won the Dakar, which proves that Carlos' philosophy, perseverance and perseverance in our work pays off. We have embarked on a new challenge with Ford M-Sport, and their way of working has allowed us to cut development times. It's a very familiar project, with a lot of human resources and a great willingness to listen and to do things well. Setting a clear objective in the first year is difficult, but we will try to be at the front. The strategy will be fundamental because there are four brands on equal terms. The first week will be key with a 48-hour stage with a lot of rocks. Then, there will be five days when we won't have the bikes ahead of us, which will penalise us a lot when it comes to opening the stage.”

 

Vehicle

FORD M-SPORT

FORD RAPTOR
FORD M-SPORT

  • FORD
  • RAPTOR
  • Coyote V8 5.000cc
  • 268 kW (360 CV)
  • 2010 kg
  • Ford M-Sport
  • Ford M-Sport
  • T1+: Prototype Cross-Country Cars 4x4

Ranking 2025

All news of C. Sainz

Summary - 17/01 17:29 [GMT +3]

DAKAR 2025: CONSECRATION FOR SANDERS AND AL RAJHI

Ultimate: Patience proves the wiser for Al Rajhi

• With a solid return to the Dakar following his absence in 2024, Henk Lategan moved into the lead at the halfway point, added a stage success to his roll of honour and held steady until the ninth special when he suffered from having to open the way. Yazeed Al Rahji, who was trailing in the South African’s wake until...

Summary - 15/01 17:42 [GMT +3]

When opportunity knocks, Docherty and Roma answer the door

FOCUS

The Empty Quarter has to be earned. Dakar entrants had to wait until stage 10 to frolic on its dunes. The field rolled out of Haradh before the sun peeked over the horizon to tackle a road section of more than 500 kilometres en route to the shores of the Arabian Gulf. The time had come to surf a sea of dunes, where the Big Kahunas rule the waves, for 117 kilometres...

Summary - 12/01 17:48 [GMT +3]

Sanders and Moraes: the apex predator and the ambush hunter

FOCUS

The stage dazzled with views of Riyadh Province after rolling out of Al Duwadimi for a wide loop to the south-west of the city, stretching for a shade over 410 km following yesterday's decision to file a few miles off the start. Fast sections on limestone plateaus began to give way to dunes as the dominant landscape on the course. The downpours of the...

Summary - 11/01 19:37 [GMT +3]

The grit of champions

FOCUS

This stage could well have been a trailer for the 2025 Dakar, shining a spotlight on two aspects of the Saudi expanses where the 47th edition is taking place. The special had the potential to restore minds and bodies to their pre-race day condition, beginning with a long sector on fast plateaus where Ross Branch and Guerlain Chicherit blundered out of...

Newsflashes - 08/01 07:15 [GMT +3] - Car

Loeb and Sainz KO, Toyota OK

The withdrawals of Sébastien Loeb and Carlos Sainz have shaken up the 2025 Dakar. Nasser Al Attiyah (Dacia) and Mattias Ekström (Ford) have stepped up as team leaders, now sitting second and third overall. Cristina Gutiérrez and Nani Roma, hit with 48-hour and 52-hour penalties, respectively, are now playing the role of water carriers in support...

Newsflashes - 07/01 07:00 [GMT +3] - Car

Spain in turmoil

Dakar title-holder Carlos Sainz is not on the day's starting list. Despite their determination to complete the remaining 640 km yesterday, after rolling onto the roof on the first part of the 48h Chrono stage, in a minimalist format Ford Raptor stripped of most of its bodywork and windscreen, the Sainz - Cruz duo had to face up to an obvious conclusion once they reached the...

Summary - 06/01 20:12 [GMT +3]

Sanders reigns supreme, Baciuska first

FOCUS

The return journey to Bisha to complete the 48 HR Chrono expedition to the northeast of the city required passing through a 90-kilometre portion of grey dunes which may have given some of the competitors grey hairs. The cars and trucks then made their way through sumptuous canyons, where the narrow tracks allowed au Lithuanian Rokas Baciuška to express his...

Newsflashes - 06/01 12:10 [GMT +3] - Car

Sainz loses plenty of time

Carlos Sainz has finished the 48 HR Chrono stage with 1:33’12’’ behind stage winner Yazeed Al Rajhi. In the general rankings, the title holder ‘El Matador’ has paid a heavy price for his accident the day before, because he trails Henk Lategan by 1:28’11’’.

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