Roma à la française

January 1 ^st 2021 - 15:50 [GMT + 3]

Years after sharing the cockpit with Michel Périn, Nani Roma is set to tackle a new edition of the Dakar with a French co-driver at his side, a last-minute change finalised in a matter of hours on 24 December.

The Bahrain Raid Xtreme team intended to strike the perfect balance between French and Spanish drivers by matching the Loeb-Elena duo with Nani Roma and Dani Oliveira. However, their plans were thwarted by the involuntary withdrawal of the co-driver of the two-time Dakar champion, who had to scramble for a back-up solution for the 2021 edition: "Dani tested positive on 9 December, so he was no longer supposed to be contagious at the time we were scheduled to leave for the rally. However, come 24 December he had yet to develop antibodies, which meant he was still potentially contagious and forced us to look for another co-driver." An urgent headhunt began straight away to find the right person for the job: "The list of first-rate co-drivers isn't that long, and they'd all been recruited by someone else. I asked Michel Périn and he was unwilling to commit on such short notice, but he told me Alexandre Winocq might be free." The co-driver who had been taking part in the Dakar since 1999 had no bucket seat with his name on it for this edition, but he was nonetheless busy with some business a world away from the Saudi desert: "In my family activity, I work with horses, and we were bang in the middle of moving from Val d'Isère to Tignes", explains the navigator who had already shaken up his schedule after his joint project with Guerlain Chicherit fell through. "When Nani called, my first thought was to say it was too late. But I've known him for quite a while. We were on the same team when we used to race in X-Raid's 'Zebra' buggy with Guerlain, so I quickly changed my mind because it's an amazing opportunity. Bahrain Raid Xtreme have done a sterling job in a short time. In turn, I also had to move fast to find an alternative solution, as I needed to find someone to take care of the horses. I couldn't just pack my suitcase and hop onto the next flight!" Swift decisions and reactions —the bread and butter of a Dakar co-driver.