N°274 Car PROXCARS TME RALLY TEAM

MAGDALENA ZAJAC

(pol) 1.66m / 52kg

Hobbies

Travelling, driving, racing

Sponsors

TME.eu (Transfer Multisort Elektronik)

2023: DNF

2023: Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (31st) / Rallye du Maroc (DNF)
2022: Tunisia Desert Challenge (15th) / Andalucia Rally (DNF)
2021: Italian Baja (1st, TH class) / Fenix Rally (3rd, historic class) / Silk Way Rally (1st, Open class) / Baja Portalegre (1st, TH class)

Interview

“You can never be prepared enough!”

Magdalena Zajac became in 2023 the second Polish woman to take part in the Dakar, over two decades after Martyna Wojciechowska finished 44th in the cars in 2002. The 55-year-old has always been a fan of motorsport, although she only started racing in 2017. Unlike many of the competitors who will be lining up for this 46th edition, ‘Magda’ has never really dreamed about doing the Dakar, and quips that she’s not really a fan of driving on sand dunes either. But she’s now obsessed with one goal: to reach the finish line, as she failed to do it last year, trapped by mechanical problems. She will once again share her Toyota Hilux with one of Poland’s biggest Dakar legends: Jacek Czachor, who has had top-10 finishes in both bikes and cars and has reached the finish line in his first 15 participations. The duo have already enjoyed success together, winning the T1 Open category at the Silk Way Rally 2021 and claiming a clutch of class podiums at various other rallies and bajas. They will be competing for the Proxcars TME Rally team, which Magda co-founded with rally engineer and constructor Adam Szelerski a few years ago. A bookshop owner by trade, Magda clearly doesn’t take herself too seriously -after all, her Instagram handle is imperfect_lady_driver- but her results hint at a fierce competitor, and Jacek acknowledges that she is “very stubborn, sometimes more than me!”. After their first Dakar experience together, they did a part of the W2RC season -Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and Rallye du Maroc- to prepare as well as possible. And now? “Let’s go forward and finish before dark”, as summarized by Jacek.


M.Z.: “I’ve always loved driving and I’ve always loved offroad, but I only started racing in 2017, in the wonderful Dacia Duster Cup project. It’s funny, but the Dakar has never been a dream of mine, and what’s more I hate driving on sand dunes! Taking part in the 2023 edition was quite a spontaneous decision, after we bought a T1 Toyota with FIA homologation in August. Fortunately, my marvellous, brave team and sponsor are able to realize any idea, even the craziest one. Jacek and I have had our ups and downs. We’re both stubborn and I sometimes have girlie quirks. Sometimes it’s the battle of two characters. But he’s a sweetheart and tries very hard to support me in every situation. We did only 4 stages in 2023 because we had problems with the engine, we had to repair it and lost a lot of time. Since then, I’ve tried to do as many rallies as possible. I’m proud to be the second Polish woman to take part in the race, but I would be much prouder to finish it! That’s my simple goal: to reach the finish line. I know the desert and we rode a lot with Jacek, but the problem is with all the mechanical things. Now we are more prepared, but you know, I learned one thing: that you can never be prepared enough!”

Vehicle

PROXCARS TME RALLY TEAM

TOYOTA HILUX
PROXCARS TME RALLY TEAM

  • TOYOTA
  • HILUX
  • Proxcars TME Rally Team
  • Proxcars TME Rally Team
  • T1.1 Prototype Cross-Country Cars 4x4

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