“We want to continue with this project”

After a challenging Dakar 2022 with his new Fesh Fesh team, Tomas Vratny is determined to enjoy better fortunes in 2023. The Czech truck driver and team owner has been competing for over a decade and made his Dakar debut in 2012. Over the course of five South American editions he always finished inside the top 20, going as high as 14th in 2015. After stepping away from the world's toughest rally for several years, he returned with a bang in 2022, entering no fewer than four trucks with his new-look outfit. It turned out to be a rally of ups and downs, with Lithuanian rookie Vaidotas Paskevicius securing 12th overall in the trucks and Radovan Kazarka reaching the finish line in Dakar Classic. However, Albert Llovera and Tomas himself were forced to abandon after heavy crashes. Undeterred, the 47-year-old returns for this 45th edition with another big team, consisting of three racing trucks, four support vehicles and two media cars. Tomas is joined for the second year running by Bartlomiej Boba and Jaromir Martinec as he switches from a Ford Cargo to an upgraded Tatra Jamal Evo I. Albert recently became an ambassador for Ford Spain, so he logically takes over as the driver of the Cargo, with his niece Margot coming in as navigator. And Vaidotas is also back looking to improve on 12th spot at the wheel of a Tatra Jamal Evo III, which Tomas and his crew drove to third place at the Rallye du Maroc in October. The Ostrava native also finished third overall in the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) and will be looking to build on that with a more consistent performance at Dakar 2023, where the absence of Kamaz is sure to light things up in the trucks.

T.V.: “Dakar 2022 wasn't easy for us at all. At the very beginning we got the sad news about the death of Karel Loprais, which affected us deeply. And then the whole team had to deal with various complications and difficulties. We rolled our Ford and damaged it badly, so it wasn't possible to continue. But in spite of everything, I have very positive feelings about the rally because we overcame so many challenges. We want to continue with this project, and everything that happened last year counts as experience. Repairing the trucks after the Dakar took us a lot of time, which is why our crew has decided to go with the Tatra Jamal in 2023. We've made substantial modifications to the truck; it has new automatic transmission, and the upgraded engine produces 950hp and 4,500nm of torque. We had a chance to test it at rallies in Spain and Morocco, and I believe it will take us to the finish line. Vaidotas and his crew took 12th place last year, so we also have quite high hopes for them.”