Quotes
Stage 14 | Car - SSV
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
428| ERYK GOCZAL
Eryk Goczał: "The emotion is incredible"
Struck by a minor mechanical and only eighth at the finish of the last stage, Eryk Goczał could hardly imagine that he would end up winning his first Dakar. Still unaware that Rokas Baciuška had run into even more serious trouble, the young Pole was simply overwhelmed by the emotion of his dream coming true…
"I'm finishing my first Dakar. Big shout-out to my family… Two days ago, we made the decision to attack at all costs because the final victory was within reach. That's what I did without calculating… There...
Stage 14 | Car - SSV
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
400| ROKAS BACIUSKA
Rokas Baciuška: "It ticks me off because it happened on the last day"
It all came crashing down for Rokas Baciuška in the last stage of a rally he had led for days. A mechanical forced him to stop for a long time, enough for Eryk Goczał to snatch the title from him. The Lithuanian finished the 45th Dakar in second place, 16 minutes down on the winner.
"We broke a gimbal and had to stop to fix it... We must have lost about twelve minutes... We finished second, that's how it is... We'll continue to fight for the world championship. It ticks me off because it happened on the last day... There were 138 km left...
Stage 14 | Truck
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
502| JANUS VAN KASTEREN
Janus van Kasteren: "You need to go full gas all the time"
Fifth in the last stage of the rally, just over six minutes behind Jaroslav Valtr, Janus van Kasteren added his name to the list of Dakar champions. The Dutchman and his Iveco pulled off a brilliant win and ended a streak of six victories for the Kamaz team, absent from the 2023 edition.
"It's not easy, you need to go full gas all the time. Everybody had some problems last week, and so did we. We lost fifteen minutes because we ran out of fuel. We managed it until the end and we're really happy with that. We made the difference three days before...
Stage 14 | Car - LW Proto
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
303| AUSTIN JONES
Austin Jones: "Look at us, back to back, huh?"
Austin Jones made it two titles in as many years and categories. After T4 and T3, will he move on to T1?
"The last stage was pretty tough. There was a lot of mud, got a little stressed out about it, but we made it through to the finish. This has been the toughest Dakar that I have ever done. We've had ups and downs, but we just stayed consistent, did our thing and look at us, back to back, huh? We're super happy, big shout-out to all the team, my navigator, Gustavo, did a good job. It was a nice little road trip around Saudi Arabia....
Stage 14 | Car
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
David Castera: "We have found the sweet spot"
David Castera, who oversaw the route in Saudi Arabia for the fourth year in a row, is happy to have struck the right balance in the 45th edition.
"It may have taken us a long time, but we have found the sweet spot in the fourth edition here. We tackled new tracks and ventured into uncharted territory, and today I am happy to have a truly balanced race in terms of difficulty. The Dakar is —and must remain— a tough event. We got there bit by bit, kicking it up a notch year after year, but we have struck the right balance, which...
Stage 14 | Car - T1
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
200| NASSER AL-ATTIYAH
Nasser Al Attiyah: "I always want to win more and more"
Nasser Al Attiyah mounted his first successful title defence, bringing his tally to five Dakar wins after his victories in 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2022.
"We just finished and I'm so happy. It was a difficult Dakar for everyone. It's crazy to manage to defend my title. I'm very happy to win five times, and Mathieu four… Sorry, Mathieu! I respect Ari enormously, he's still my idol. I always want to win more and more, now I want to defend my world champion's title. We didn't have to attack like crazy. We managed to get through the...
Stage 14 | Car
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
201| SEBASTIEN LOEB
Sébastien Loeb: "We have to be happy with what we got"
An eight stage win evaded Sébastien Loeb on the road to Dammam. The Frenchman had to settle for seventh place in the last special after missing a waypoint... It won't spoil his mood as he climbs onto the second step of the podium, just like last year, after a comeback that went down in Dakar history.
""It's good... After the first week we had, we couldn't have hoped for much better... It was impossible to beat Nasser head-on. He had a great race and made no mistakes… We have to be happy with what we got. Our second part of the rally...
Stage 14 | Car - T1
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
230| LUCAS MORAES
Lucas Moraes: "The podium is important for the rally community in Brazil"
Rookies who finish on the podium of the category are few and far between, and when it's a Brazilian who does it, it's samba time! Lucas Moraes put in a flawless performance in his Toyota Overdrive.
"It was important for the rally community in Brazil because it had never happened before. I'm going to celebrate with all the Brazilian photographers. I don't have any other Dakar to compare, but I heard this one was very tough."
Stage 14 | Bike - GP
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
47| KEVIN BENAVIDES
Kevin Benavides: " A completely crazy Dakar"
The Argentinian stands tall at the top of the general classification after the last stage of the Dakar. He is the winner of the 45th edition by 43" over Toby Price.
"This morning, my head was empty except for each kilometre of the stage, from 0 to 136. It's incredible to pull off the win at the end of this completely crazy Dakar, and with such a small gap. I'm also the first to win with two different motorbike brands, and that makes me very proud."
Stage 14 | Bike - Quad
AL-HOFUF > DAMMAM
151| ALEXANDRE GIROUD
Alexandre Giroud: "It's a crazy day"
Double delight for the Frenchman, who claimed his second Dakar in a row, again following the withdrawal of Manuel Andújar and with a host of rivals coming for him.
"It's a crazy day. To win two times the Dakar makes it a crazy day. I'm very happy. Thanks to my family, my partner and my mechanic, who did a great job."
Follow us
Get exclusive information