“Our truck is getting faster and faster”

6 janvier 2019 - 17:54

T.S.: “I remember with perfect clarity that first Dakar in 1999 with my father. Everything was a big surprise: the wide open spaces, the amazing dunes, the heavy impacts, the tense atmosphere. It was however so long. We managed to finish in fourth place overall and I still have in mind a stage between Zouerat and Tidjikja. It was one of the hardest stages in my life. We spent more than 13 hours just on one stage. My first Dakar as a driver (2011) was perfect and pleasant, with no punctures, a trouble-free machine and no navigation issues. Our truck is getting faster and faster. Step by step. Last year, the first stages featured brutal dunes and this forced many crews, including Yoshimasa’s crew, to retire from the race. These extremely difficult conditions were a huge factor in how we were able to maintain our position in the leading group. Also, our truck was able to deliver levels of power that were comparable to our competitors thanks to the upgrades that we made. I am very happy that we were able to finish at a higher position than in 2017. We are committed to making better trucks and putting together an even better team to aim for higher rankings. At the Silk Way Rally, we were racing in a new truck. The HINO500 that I drove was built based on a completely different concept from before, and we were able to confirm its racing capabilities and reliability in this rally. Constantly on our minds throughout the race was our time differences with the leading trucks, and I think we were able to put up an equal fight with KAMAZ on their home turf.”