“We will help each other to win this rally”
Crew facts
NAA:
- Nasser Al Attiyah will head to the next Dakar Rally with a particular vengeance, though he won't admit it. Because one, it has now been two years since he last won.And second, because he is still reeling from the disappointment of losing the W2RC title (which would have been his fourth consecutive title and ninth overall, counting his previous victories in the World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies) in the final stretch of the Morocco Rally due to a speeding penalty.
- For many years, the Qatari pursued his two passions at the highest level: motor racing and shooting (clay pigeon shooting). But after competing in six Olympic Games and taking bronze in London in 2012, he decided to focus solely on motor racing and the Dacia project. However, this did not prevent him from competing in the WRC season finale in Saudi Arabia.
- The Qatari made his Dakar debut in 2004 in a Mitsubishi, finishing 10th. Since then, he has won in three different vehicles: a Volkswagen Race Touareg in 2011, a Mini in 2015, and a Toyota in 2019, 2022, and 2023.
- After a season and a half with Edouard Boulanger, the 55-year-old driver and father of two will contest the Dakar with a new co-driver, Fabian Lurquin, whom he swapped with his teammate Sébastien Loeb. They got to know each other during the last two rounds of the World Championship.
F.L.
- Following in the footsteps of his father, Jean-Marie Lurquin, co-driver for Jean-Louis Schlesser with whom he finished third in the 2004 Dakar, the Belgian made his Dakar debut in 2005, partnering Chinese driver Lang Xu (44th).
- The first stage victory for the co-driver from Liège was achieved with Mathieu Serradori, when he returned to the event in 2019 after a long break.
- Lurquin, a former airline pilot, caught the eye of Sébastien Loeb, who was looking for a new co-driver after five editions alongside Daniel Elena, his partner throughout his WRC glory years. The duo, formed in 2022, finished second overall.
- An indefatigable walker, Fabian discovered a new teammate in Nasser Al Attiyah, with whom he tested himself in Portugal and Morocco. Unfortunately, he failed in his quest to help his driver win another world championship title.
- Lurquin, who has finished on the Dakar podium five times, dreams of reaching the top step.
Ambition
NAA: " This edition of the Dakar should be superb. We are so fortunate to be in Saudi Arabia because the landscapes are incredible. It's perfect for the Dakar. I'm sure the route will be truly fantastic. It's going to be an awesome edition.
The goal is to win. We have a powerful team, and I'm sure we'll be ready. We're going to help each other to win. The significant change is having a new co-driver, Fabian. I trust him completely, and he's competed in every Dakar in Saudi Arabia. He has a lot of experience. We're going to try to do our job and win. Last year, we had a bad day. Otherwise, if you remove that bad day, we could have won the Dakar."
F.L.: "It's difficult to look back on the end of this rally. More than anything, the goal was to win the title for Nasser. And we failed. This sport offers moments of pure joy, but also setbacks. When everything comes together perfectly, it's magical. But when it doesn't work out, it hurts. I took some time off afterwards, but now the goal is to come back even better and stronger. It's not easy to look back on the last Dakar, especially after retiring very early. You think back and say to yourself, "What if?", and you realise how much it's all down to the details, and that you can't overlook any of them!
But you also realise how lucky you are. Because this is the car and the race I want to be in, and nowhere else. As someone once said, losing is not an option, so we learn. And we're already preparing for the next one."
