“At least the podium to be satisfied”

While Giniel De Villiers has run his streak of Dakar finishes to 17, the past few editions have not met expectations. Nevertheless, the South African driver is a model of consistency, having only once finished outside the Top 10 (2017) with 13 Top 5s and seven podium results. In his first go in Saudi Arabia, he had to settle for fifth place, notably behind team-mates, Nasser Al Attiyah and Yazeed Al Rajhi. While the quarantine in South Africa forced him to take it easy during the first half of the year, he used the time to work on his conditioning, with "authorised" mountain bike outings in the national park near his home. Then the time came to get back behind the wheel of his Toyota Hilux in the South African championship where he finished runner-up to his new and promising team-mate Henk Lategan whom he will guide on the Dakar. The winner of the first South American Dakar in 2009, remains no less ambitious on an edition that he hopes will be more technical. He will once again team with Spaniard Alex Haro.

G.D.V.: I grew up on a farm and raced everything I could get my hands on. It began when I was 4 with a pedal kart. My father loved motor racing and he passed his passion on to me. I then got my real start in circuit racing, most notably in touring cars before moving onto off-road.
My 2020 was very calm during the quarantine but then it got extremely busy in August. I raced in five rounds of the South African championship and we did a tremendous amount of testing. My co-driver Alex Haro was able to join me for two races. The 2020 Dakar was my first with Alex and I had nothing to complain about. He is very professional and our teamwork can only get better but you know it takes time to get a good feeling and get used to one another. Previously, I spent ten years with Dirk Von Zitzewitz (now co-pilot of Al Rajhi).
I think that we were all surprised last year by how beautiful the scenery was. It was a very welcome surprise. When I compete in a Dakar, I aim for no less than the podium and finishing fifth was disappointing. We had big problems with the tyres with 14 punctures and then we lost time here and there. We put in some strong runs with a stage win but we could have done much better. To be satisfied in 2021, I need to be at least in the overall Top 3 but there are so many fast guys. As for the rally-route, I hope it will be more technical to emphasize driving skills. It shouldn't just be a matter of stomping on the gas.”