• After a recent test session in the country, the Peugeot Total ‘Dream Team’ is ready to roll for the five days of the Rallye du Maroc, which starts on Thursday October 5. This will be the team’s last competitive outing before the Dakar Rally begins in January 2018.
• Ahead lies a prologue and five stages, making up 2 570 kilometres of competition through some of Morocco’s finest scenery from Fès to Erfoud – including sand dunes that are also representative of the Dakar Rally.
• PEUGEOT is entering two examples of the 3008DKR: number #310 for Carlos Sainz / Lucas Cruz and #312 for Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena.
QUOTES / UNQUOTE
Bruno FAMIN, Peugeot Sport Director & Team Manager Peugeot Total “We had a successful test in Morocco recently, trying out some of our latest evolutions for Dakar. While the regulations don’t permit us to use exactly the same specification of car this week as we will look to run in Dakar, we can still apply some of the lessons learned to this year’s Rallye du Maroc. Not only is this fantastic event a very valuable part of our Dakar preparation, but it’s also a key market for Peugeot: our participation forms an important part of the company’s commercial strategy with the launch of the new Peugeot Pick Up in Morocco the day that the rally starts. As always, we approach the rally in a humble and studious way, with the goal of taking away as much data as possible before we finalize our 2018 Dakar set-up. The competition and the rally will be very tough, so we are taking nothing for granted.”
Sébastien LOEB, Team Peugeot Total Driver PEUGEOT 3008DKR n°312 “Morocco is a bit like a second home for our team. In fact, it’s probably the cross country terrain that I am most familiar with, as it was also where I drove the Peugeot DKR for the first time. For me, the objective will be to continue the learning curve we have started with successful results: we’ve been challenging for the lead in all the events we contested this year, so now I need to try and convert that potential into a win. Daniel has done an excellent job to adapt to the navigation, but this will be useful practice for him too before we head to South America.”
Carlos SAINZ, Team Peugeot Total Driver PEUGEOT 3008DKR n°310 “Although it’s our first rally since Dakar, we’ve followed all the development up to now, including in Morocco, so we have a good idea of the capabilities of the car, which has evolved in a methodical and consistent way. Of course, competition is where you can really tell if the work you have done has been effective, so I’m looking forward to getting back into the car and seeing where we are. The feeling of competition is one that you never lose. For myself and Lucas, the goal is to prepare ourselves as best as possible for the Dakar.”
WHAT’S NEXT
The rally begins with a short “Superspecial stage on Thursday October 5, close to Fès: 12.16 kilometres of competitive action with 42 kilometres of road section. The priority for both Team Peugeot Total crews will be to have a clean run in preparation for the real action on stage 1, which will take place on Friday October 6 from Fès to
DID YOU KNOW ?
The Rallye du Maroc two years ago marked Sebastien Loeb and Daniel Elena’s first participation in a Cross Country Rally with the Peugeot 2008DKR. Erfoud – where this edition of the Rallye du Maroc finishes – was also where Loeb first tested the Peugeot, earlier in 2015. Loeb and Elena finished their debut Cross-Country event 44th, having lived a few adventures along the way, but the experience ignited a passion that was to take them all the way to
