“It's a perfect job for me”

For the third consecutive year, South Racing will have one of the top truck drivers in the business at the wheel of one of their fast assistance trucks. Tomas Tomecek is a genuine Dakar legend, having won the rally on his 1995 debut as a navigator for Karel Loprais. 'The Desert Master' also claimed two podium finishes as a driver, coming third in 1999 and second in 2003. The 52-year-old only made a couple of appearances in South America, preferring to compete at the Africa Eco Race, which he won in 2011, 2012 and 2014. He also claimed victory there in 2022 in historic fashion: driving alone in his tried-and-tested Tatra 815, without a navigator or a mechanic. Very much living up to another of his nicknames, 'Captain Solo', Tomas therefore became the first truck driver ever to claim a solo victory at a long-distance rally, joking that he considers his vehicle “a ten-tonne motorcycle”. The Czech veteran is not allowed to go it alone at the Dakar, however, so he’ll be joined by Dutch navigator Ard Munster and Italian mechanic Niccolo Funaioli, who was already part of his crew last year. Their 17-year-old orange behemoth boasts an air-cooled V12 engine and manual transmission, and it can carry up to a tonne of tools and spare parts. South Racing are looking to conquer two classes at Dakar 2023, having entered a host of top crews in the lightweight prototypes (T3) and SSVs (T4), and they will be relying on smart, swift and skillful service. Tomas certainly ticks all the boxes.

T.T.: “I'm looking forward to it. It's a perfect job for me and I'm very happy to have it. I'm bringing the winning truck from the Africa Eco Race and I believe that together we can do a good job with service. This year I drove the AER alone for the fourth time and I'm more satisfied race by race. It's freedom. Freedom to race. I love it. The Tatra coped with everything. She always keeps going, she's smooth and reliable. I also wanted to do the Dakar without a navigator, but I wasn't allowed! So I approached Ard Munster. We worked together in the sweeper truck at the Morocco Desert Challenge a few years ago. We know each other, so we'll have something to build on.”