PERFORMANCE OF THE DAY: CASALE, A ONE-MAN ORCHESTRA
Ignacio Casale knows how to do everything! He discovered the Dakar in 2010, in the cockpit of a truck alongside his father Francisco and then the following year took part on a bike for his second participation, which he finished in 40th position. However, it was when he participated in the quad category that the Chilean became a genuine winning machine. Casale gobbled up 23 stage victories, with three triumphs in the category as well (in 2014, 2018 and 2020). However, Ignacio likes to mix things up and took part behind the wheel of a truck in 2021 and 2022, finishing 9th in an era when the leading places were dominated by the Russian Kamaz drivers. After a pause in 2025, the driver who has since changed to the Challenger class has begun to play a leading role once more. Just before leaving to travel to Yanbu, his wife gave birth to twin girls, which seems to be bringing him luck. Today, he picked up his first stage victory in the class through beating Dania Akeel by 38’’. However, it looks to be much more difficult for him to follow in the footsteps of his illustrious countryman Chaleco Lopez who, has triumphed in the SSV category (in 2019 and 2021) as well as the Challenger class (in 2022) because on the rest day Casale finds himself in 6th place in the race hierarchy, 1 hour 53 minutes behind leader Pau Navarro.
