Quotes
Stage 12 | Car - Truck
YANBU > YANBU
601| MARTIN MACIK
Martin Macík: “We won it all together”
Distanced by his rivals on the first stages of the rally, Martin Macík took control of the Dakar 2024 during the two days that the competitors had to spend in the dunes of the Empty Quarter. With Janus van Kasteren and Aleš Loprais in trouble, the Czech took the lead in the general rankings and never relinquished it. Behind the wheel of his faithful Iveco affectionately nicknamed ‘Cenda’, prepared by the family workshop MM Technology that he co-founded with his father, Martin Senior, Macík withstood the pressure thanks to the support of his...
Stage 12 | Car - SSV
YANBU > YANBU
411| XAVIER DE SOULTRAIT
Xavier de Soultrait: “We won fair and square”
Xavier de Soultrait has won the title in the SSV category on his second Dakar on four wheels, in a Sébastien Loeb Racing Polaris.
“I was quite close to winning on a bike in 2021 when I broke my back. It was tough to handle at the time with very young children. I asked myself the question of whether I would carry on or stop everything. I’m really happy to have teamed up with Martin, Polaris and Loeb Racing. We had half an hour’s lead, we were attacked by some not very classy people, but we kept our heads up. We didn't...
Stage 12 | Car - Challenger
YANBU > YANBU
306| CRISTINA GUTIERREZ HERRERO
Cristina Gutiérrez: “I pushed myself until the finish”
Having started 25 minutes behind Mitch Guthrie this morning, the Spanish rider took advantage of the American's mechanical problems to win the Challenger class. She becomes the first woman to win a Dakar title since Jutta Kleinschmidt.
“I always tried to fight until the finish. We didn’t know what had happened until the last kilometres. We pushed a lot on this stage because I knew that 25 minutes is a lot, but if something happens behind you, you never know. When I got to the finish, I didn’t know what had happened, but I’m...
Stage 12 | Car - Ultimate
YANBU > YANBU
203| SEBASTIEN LOEB
Sébastien Loeb: “At the end, it’s not too bad”
Sébastien Loeb has achieved a fifth podium finish out of eight appearances on the Dakar. Unfortunately, this time the BRX driver was once again unable to secure victory. Loeb won the final stage, his fifth success on this 2024 edition, but still had to make do with third place overall. It is a positive result, however, given that the Frenchman almost retired between Alula and Yanbu.
“In the end, it’s a podium place for us. So, I would say it’s not so bad looking to where we were yesterday, when we were sitting on...
Stage 12 | Car - Ultimate
YANBU > YANBU
221| GUILLAUME DE MEVIUS
Guillaume de Mevius: “It’s an amazing feeling to be second”
Guillaume de Mevius, who finished 2nd overall on his first participation, made a remarkable debut in the Ultimate class, providing a bit of revenge for the man who was not selected by Toyota Gazoo Racing.
“For sure, I’m very happy. It was a crazy race. We never expected to be on the podium. We always dreamed about it, but it was not the objective at the beginning of the race. It’s an amazing feeling to be here, it’s an amazing feeling to be second. Thank you to Overdrive, thank you to the team, thank you to my family and...
Stage 12 | Car - Ultimate
YANBU > YANBU
204| CARLOS SAINZ
Carlos Sainz: “To finish and to win this race, I’m so happy for Audi”
By winning his 4th title on the Dakar, the first for Audi, Carlos Sainz joins Ari Vatanen in the rally winners’ roll of honour, with Al Attiyah and his 5 victories plus Peterhansel and his 8 car trophies remain ahead of him.
“It means that when you work hard and you believe in yourself, when you have a good team and good people around you, then the work will always pay off. This car is so special, it’s so difficult to manage, it has been so difficult to make it work. To finish and to win this race, well, I’m so happy for...
Stage 12 | Bike - R2
YANBU > YANBU
96| TOBIAS EBSTER
Tobias Ebster: “It’s the toughest rally in the world. I love it”
Kinigadner’s nephew has won the Original by Motul category on his first participation on the Dakar.
“I’ve been thinking so much about what happened in the last few years and now being here at the finish for my first Dakar as winner of Original Motuel and in the top 20 overall, best rookie, well, it’s a big one, it’s a really big one. Thank you, I almost need to cry after going through so much in the last few years and also the last few weeks. I made new friends, I lost friends, it was such a big adventure, it was...
Stage 12 | Bike - Quad
YANBU > YANBU
174| MANUEL ANDUJAR
Manuel Andújar: “It was a really tough race”
Manuel Andújar has reacquainted himself with victory following two years in which he did not reach the finish.
“It was really tough, really tough after two years of not finishing. For me, it’s impressive to be here one more time. We’ve been battling since stage number four. On every stage there has been no more than one minute of a gap between us, so it was a really tough race. I couldn’t have done it without my team, they are the best team here. They did an excellent job. For sure, it was a really long Dakar, very...
Stage 12 | Bike - GP
YANBU > YANBU
42| ADRIEN VAN BEVEREN
Adrien Van Beveren: “We are closer than ever to the dream”
Adrien Van Beveren has finally secured the first podium finish of his career on the Dakar career after two finishes just outside the top three.
“After the last years and the difficulties I had, the crashes, all of that, overall, to be on the podium, finally on the podium of the Dakar, it tastes really good. I’ve been fighting until the end. We’ve finished third, but we were in the fight for victory. We are closer than ever to the dream. To step onto the podium is a step towards my dream of victory”.
Stage 12 | Bike - R2
YANBU > YANBU
20| HARITH NOAH
Harith Noah: “I tried to not have any expectations”
The Sherco rider, who was impressive in the second week of the race, was the fastest of the Rally 2 bikers and becomes the first Indian to win a Dakar category.
“I’m happy that I’ve finished. That was the main goal, to reach the finishing line and we are here. I’m really blessed to be here. I learned a lot this year, especially during the second week, I felt really strong and it’s something to build on for next year. I don’t know if I won my category. If I have, that’s good. I knew I was somewhere in...
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