Even Going Halfway in 2024 Took Heart
The Road to the Dakar Rally Podium Is Paved in Blood, Sweat & Tires
Words: Justin W. Coffey
Photos: FOTOP, Rally Zone, A.S.O.
The fifth edition of the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia kicked off on January 5th in AlUla, an ancient Arabic oasis city located in the Medina Province. The rally consists of a prologue stage followed by 12 complete stages stretching over 14 days with the finish slated for January 19th in Yanbu. There were 418 race vehicles: 132 bikes (including 28 Original by Motul unassisted bikers), 10 quads, 70 cars in the Ultimate category, 42 in the Challenger T3 class, 36 in the SSV T4 class, and 47 Trucks. In total, 585 competitors gathered in the desert to take on the infamous Dakar Rally for 2024. The UTV segment (known colloquially in Saudi as Challenger and SSV) includes some big names for the new year, including three Americans racing in both categories.
Mitch Guthrie (#303, Taurus Factory Team) and Austin “A.J.” Jones (#305, Can-Am Factory Team) are competing in the Challenger T3 category while Sara Price (#419, Price Racing) joined the SSV T4 class for the first time. Seth Quintero (#216), a former Red Bull Junior Team racer, moved from a UTV to an Ultimate T1 car, piloting a Toyota Gazoo Racing machine – the only pro American behind the wheel in this elite category. Additionally, Polaris partnered with Loeb Racing to compete in the 2024 edition of Dakar with Xavier de Soultrait (#411) and Florent Vayssade (#405) at the helm of an all-new Polaris engineered RZR Pro R Factory in the T4 category.
More familiar names can be found on this year’s roster, including Cristina Gutierrez (#306, Red Bull Off-Road JR. Team USA By BFG), Francisco “Checo” Lopez (#301, Can-Am Factory Racing), João Ferreira (#400, Can-Am Factory Racing), and the Goczal family of Energylandia Rally Team which includes prodigy Eryk (#302), his father Marek (#304) and his uncle Michal (#310).
“The last couple of days out here have been brutal but good for us. We’re currently sitting in P5 with 6 stages left to go. These stages have been crazy long with huge liaisons before and after [the special]. We finished the 550 Km Chrono-48 stage in the ‘Empty Quarter’ across some of the biggest dunes in the world! Sleeping out on the sand floor, eating rice and beans out of a can over a fire is something I’ll definitely never forget. We’ve put 4,197 kilometers (2,607 miles) under our tires, and we’re only halfway done. We’re definitely ready to make a big push these next few days and try to make a run for the lead.” – Austin “AJ” Jones (#305), Red Bull Can-Am Factory, T3
In the Challenger T3 category, 19-year-old Eryk Goczal set an early pace in his new car winning the first two stages before Mitch Guthrie collected a win on stage three. But Goczal returned on SS4 to acquire yet another stage win, putting him more than 30 minutes ahead of his father Marek in the overall classification. Guthrie’s stage win and consistency on the course have allowed the American to stay in contention through five stages, leaving him third overall and just 39 minutes back from Goczal. Francisco Lopez picked up his first stage win of the rally on SS5 putting him fourth overall in the general classification behind Guthrie and the Goczal family.
“This was the most difficult stage of my life. I don’t know if it was perfect, but I hope it’s good enough, because that was the most difficult stage of my life. It was crazy, for sure. I will not remember the sleeping part of the marathon but the driving part, because we did eight hours which is the longest I’ve ever done, the most…” – Eryk Goczal (#302), Energylandia Rally Team, T3
The 2024 route, which will cover nearly 5,000 kilometers in total, features all-new sections of the Saudi Arabian desert and nine different bivouacs have been established nationwide. A new 48-hour stage format, contested over two days with the constraints of a marathon stage (no assistance or vehicle maintenance allowed by teams), began on Stage 6. When the clock hit 4 pm local time, drivers and crews were spread out over eight different bivouac camps, and all vehicles were required to stop at the next bivouac they came across. With no understanding of their rivals’ performances, the competitors camped out for the night and set off again at 7 am the following day to complete the remaining section of the route, a total of more than 600 km of special stage.
Six more grueling stages remain after the 48-hour Chrono Stage is completed. Competitors are allotted their single rest day in Riyadh before heading toward Al Duwadimi and eventually north to Hail.
Sara Price, a ‘Road to Dakar’ winner at the 2022 Sonora Rally, made her debut at the Dakar Rally this year behind the wheel of a South Racing Can-Am. Price has managed a top-ten finish on every stage thus far, recording an impressive third-place finish on SS1 to set the tone. The SSV T4 category is a tough one, though, with a different driver claiming first place on every stage from the start of the rally. Price, however, is consistent and has kept herself in contention for a podium sitting in fifth place overall in the general classification, only 13 minutes back from the leader, Jerome De Sadeleer. Xavier de Soultrait collected his first stage win on SS5 behind the wheel of the RZR Pro R Factory supported by Sebastien Loeb Racing. Soultrait is currently sixth overall in the general classification behind Price, 22 minutes back from the leader.
“We are giving it our all we are now only halfway but achieving our goals one day at a time and our biggest goal to start the Dakar rally was to make it to rest day, now that we are here it’s time to regroup and think forward as we still have one week to go. I’m beyond thankful to be here and so proud of our team thus far.” – Sara Price (#419), Price Racing,T4
The Dakar Rally is unlike anything else. It’s a test of fortitude, consistency, conservation and commitment. Small mistakes create big problems for racers who underestimate the desert landscape and the long, demanding days that lie ahead. The halfway point is a major milestone for those who can make it, and the Rest Day in Riyadh is well deserved. The remaining kilometers aren’t going to be easy on anyone and mechanical problems, navigational errors or mistakes behind the wheel will cost teams big (time).
But for those that can survive, the Dakar Rally is the ultimate test and a way to prove their racing pedigree on the biggest stage of them all. And for America, this is a mighty year, with Mitch Guthrie and A.J. Jones holding onto two spots in the Challenger T3 categories’ top five while Sara Price has her heart and eyes set on a podium finish in the SSV T4 category, which would make her the first American female to ever step foot onto one of the top three spots!
Six stages and more than 3,700 kilometers separate the bivouacs of the 48-Hour Chrono Stage and the finish is Yanbu. This is anyone’s race, and the following week will determine who goes home with a gold medal and who packs their bags a bit early. Stay tuned!
“It was the first time for the 48-hour Chrono on the Dakar. I’m really happy to experience this first time. I’ve spent a lot of time in Arabic-speaking countries, and while I’m not Arabic, nor Muslim, I feel like a bit like a Bedouin…” – Xavier de Soultrait (#411), Polaris Factory & Loeb Racing, T4
TOP FINISHERS
For live updates and race results, head to the Dakar Rally website: https://www.dakar.live.worldrallyraidchampionship.com/en/
CHALLENGER, T3
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#303 Mitchell Guthrie Jr., (USA) Kellon Walch (USA); Taurus Factory Team: 27H 54′ 20”
- #306 Cristina Gutierrez (ESP) Pablo Moreno Huete
(ESP); Red Bull Off-Road JR. Team USA By BFG: 28H 18′ 36” + 00H 24′ 16”
- #301 Francisco Lopez Contardo (CHL), Juan Pablo Latrach Vinagre (CHL); Can-Am Factory Team: 28H 18′ 54” + 00H 24′ 34”
- #305 Austin “AJ” Jones (USA), Gustavo Gugelmin (BRA); Can-Am Factory Team: 28H 42′ 14” + 00H 47′ 54”
- #300 Rokas Baciuska (LTU), Oriol Vidal Montijano (ESP); Can-Am Factory Team: 29H 12′ 15” + 01H 17′ 55”
SSV, T4
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#411 Xavier de Soultrait (FRA), Martin Bonnet (FRA); Loeb Racing, Polaris Factory Racing: 08H 25′ 10”
- #400 Joao Ferreira (PRT), Filipe Palmeiro (PRT); Can-Am Factory Team: 08H 28′ 45” + 00H 03′ 35”
- #408 Yasir Seaidan (SAU), Adrien Metge (FRA); MMP: 08H 31′ 25′ + 00H 06′ 15”
- #419 Sara Price (USA), Jeremy Gray (USA); South Racing Can-Am: 08H 31′ 47” + 00H 06′ 37”
- #405 Florent Vayssade (FRA), Nicolas Rey (FRA); Loeb Racing, Polaris Factory Racing: 08H 37′ 29” + 00H 12′ 19”