- First stage from Buenos Aires to Villa Carlos Paz
After four days in Buenos Aires, the Dakar finally will be started, tomorrow. All the administrative checks and scrutineerings have been completed and the three Monster Energy Rally Raid Team MINI ALL4 Racing vehicles have crossed the start podium erected in front of the Casa Rosada, the residence of Argentina’s President. On 04th January, everybody will have to get up early: from 07:45hrs local time, the MINI ALL4 Racing vehicles will leave the parc fermé to start into stage one.
Nani Roma (ESP) and his French co-driver Michel Périn contest the 2015 edition of the prestigious event as reigning champions and therefore are the hunted ones, this year. “The Dakar will be extremely tough”, says Roma who races the green and black MINI ALL4 Racing. “There will be eight days of racing, prior to the day of rest, and the marathon stage also will be contested in the first half of the event.”
Roma will have to battle it out with strong team-internal rivals: the two Argentineans Orlando Terranova and Bernardo ‘Ronnie’ Graue also want to push and become a factor in the fight for the win, with their red and black MINI ALL4 Racing. “The racing at the front end of the field will be extremely close and thrilling, this year,” says Terranova. “We have got competitive drivers in our team and in addition, Toyota benefits from the changed regulations. Meanwhile, we can’t say where Peugeot are standing. Only with the first stages contested we will be able to assess their competitiveness.”
The blue and black MINI ALL4 Racing raced by Poland’s Krzysztof Holowczyc and his French navigator Xavier Panseri – who also lives in Poland – is the third car that will contest the 2015 Dakar for the Monster Energy Rally Raid Team. The pairing won the Baja Poland and they are determined to also shine in their first joint Dakar appearance. “Following the performances in the previous years I definitely want to make it to the podium, this year”, says Holowczyc. “To battle it out for the win certainly will be anything but easy but on the other hand, everybody will have to overcome numerous obstacles, this year. If everything should run flawlessly, this year, we have got what it takes to battle it out at the very front of the field.”
Over the course of stage one, the teams will spend several hours in their cars: a total of more than 830 kilometres has to be covered, featuring a 170-kilometre special stage. And although everybody will be keen on making it as far to the top as possible, nobody wants to win the first stage. After all, there is a proverb saying: “The winner of the first stage never will win the Dakar.” The stage finish is located at the city of Villa Carlos Paz, not far from Cordoba.
