2025 AMBITIONS

A.R.: “We’ve been working on some upgrades but the car is the same as the one I had in 2023. It’s a very reliable vehicle, which is essential to me at the Dakar. So, we have a good feeling with this car we’ve been using for three years.

I decided to take a step back last year. And I realised how hard it is to miss it once you’ve done it. So, I’m coming back with even more determination. I’m counting the days until I’m traveling to Saudi Arabia on 29 December.

The car is the same, and I’m a bit older. My two participations gave me a lot of knowledge and understanding of the Dakar Classic. It’s a race like no other. So now I feel quite ready.”

S.M.: “I expect nothing new and nothing old, in the sense that I expect to experience this fourth participation the same way I’ve enjoyed the previous ones. Every Dakar is a new adventure, every Dakar is a question mark. So, my baggage of experience is relative, we are always going to enlarge it. What I am sure of is that when I return home, I will definitely have something new to add to my wealth of experience. So, I can only expect to enjoy myself and have a good catharsis.

I’ve done it with different pilots, who have become friends as the days went by. I try to bring them my focus and professionalism. I certainly put a lot of effort into it day by day. Being in a cockpit for 15 days is really difficult so it is fundamental to have the right collaboration. The formula for a good race is to be united, to get along well and to be very precise.

I also hope to have a lot of fun and to bring home a good result. We are a tried and tested crew, we’ve already managed it in the past. Surely the most important thing is to come back knowing that we gave it our best and to have that indelible experience, like every time we’ve done it.”