“It was one of the most serious accidents of my career”

Disaster struck for Martin Prokop and his co-driver Jan Tomanek at the recent Rallye du Maroc, where a high-speed crash on the third stage almost put paid to their Dakar 2020 ambitions. Jan was badly hurt in the accident and had to be flown back to the Czech Republic for treatment, while their car -a Ford Raptor affectionately known as 'Shrek 2'- was completely destroyed. Distraught by his co-driver's injury but determined to go ahead with the Dakar, Martin contacted Viktor Chytka, who has completed the Dakar three times and had already stepped in for Jan at this year's Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Viktor has been a regular on the rally in recent years even when not competing, accompanying his brother Marian, a renowned photographer, in one of the press cars. The 35-year-old has thus been thrown in at the deep end, and will join Martin as he looks to make it as successful an outing as possible in Saudi Arabia. MP-Sports have been one of the most impressive private teams at the Dakar in recent years, with Martin and Jan steadily improving to take the best Czech result in the cars, sixth, in 2019. This year they will be joined by trucks legend Martin Kolomy, who will be driving the second MP-Sports car with Jiri Stross. First things first, though -'Shrek' will have to be rebuilt and flown out to the Middle East, where WRC veteran Martin is hoping to crack the top five for the first time.

M.P.: “We had a bad end to the season. It was one of the most serious accidents of my career, and a moment I would like to forget. There was even speculation that we might not start the Dakar. I'm glad Jan is doing better and that he can recover at home, but at the moment it looks like he will need at least six months of treatment and rest. The choice of co-driver fell on Viktor, with whom I raced at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, which Jan was unable to attend because of pneumonia. Even if it was only based on two phone calls, our cooperation was very good. Now we've spent 2000 kilometres together in the desert, with tough navigation, so we know each other better. That being said, the Dakar is one of a kind. The top 10 drive at an extremely fast pace and the slightest mistake is punished. You have to be ready for anything, you have to go fast, and you need to have absolute confidence in your technology. You also need luck. So the Dakar will be a true test of our endurance and teamwork. But Viktor has already done a good job. Just before the race in Abu Dhabi I got ill, and I was very sick in the car. He had to deal with that, listening and handing me the sick bags! But he was a loyal teammate and stuck it out. The car couldn't be repaired. I always said that it was unbreakable, and that if it was broken, it would mean an injury for one of us. Unfortunately that turned out to be the case."