The 2024 Dakar Rally will be the fifth successive event to take place entirely in Saudi Arabia, but organiser ASO has laid out a route that will be vastly different to previous years.
One of the biggest highlights of this year’s challenge is a two-day ‘chrono stage’, where competitors will have until 4pm to cover as much ground as possible before halting at the next bivouac they come across. They will head out again the following morning at 7am in order to be the first to reach the finish line, covering a competitive distance of nearly 600km in the process. To add to the difficulty, no assistance from teams will be allowed overnight as per ‘marathon stage’ rules, meaning drivers will have to fend for themselves in case of any technical drama.
But perhaps of even bigger interest is five-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah’s defection to Prodrive after a lengthy stint at Toyota. Al-Attiyah has always been a well-known quantity in cross-country rallying and the success he has enjoyed in Dakar since the rally moved to Saudi Arabia in 2020 has elevated him among the most successful drivers ever in this discipline. His move could well dictate the results of Toyota and Prodrive this year, as well those of rival entrants.
We look at the prospects of all major manufacturers competing in the 45th edition of the world’s most popular rally-raid.
Prodrive
Prodrive has shown all the ingredients to be a serious challenger in the last few years and 2024 marks its best chance to finally bag that elusive victory with the Hunter T1+. With Al-Attiyah now leading its attack, Prodrive can claim to have a line-up that is on par with Audi’s, except it won’t have to deal with an overly complicated hybrid system.
Al-Attiyah has already completed two events in the Hunter and, given that he has won Dakar with three different manufacturers, one can count on the Qatari driver to make a smooth adaptation from the vastly different Hilux pick-up he drove during his time at Toyota.
Completing Al-Attiyah’s efforts would be nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb, who continues his search for a maiden victory in Dakar after seven unsuccessful attempts. In 2023, Loeb pulled off an incredible recovery from an early setback as he won a record six consecutive stages during the middle of the event to finish behind Al-Attiyah. With fewer punctures and improved overall reliability, Loeb should be a serious contender for victory this year as he makes his final appearance with Bahrain Raid Xtreme before joining Dacia in 2025 along with Al-Attiyah.
Another five Prodrive-built Hunters will contest this year’s event under different banners, although French driver Guerlain Chicherit - who won two stages last year - will not be part of the team’s line-up this year.
Toyota
While Toyota will lack star power in 2024 following the departure of Al-Attiyah, it would be wrong to discount it from the fight, especially when you consider that it is expanding its presence to five factory cars.
Leading the charge will be 2009 winner Giniel de Villiers, the only member of Toyota’s 2023 line-up that has been retained by the Japanese manufacturer. The South African has finished inside the top five at all but two occasions since he joined Toyota back in 2012 - and this year offers him a chance to emerge out of Al-Attiyah’s shadows and repeat the kind of success he enjoyed at Volkswagen in the late noughties and early 2010s.
De Villiers will be joined at Toyota by Lucas Moraes, who shocked everyone on his debut in 2023 as he finished third behind Al-Attiyah and Loeb while aboard an Overdrive-run Hilux. Given how impressive he was in a customer entry, Moraes would definitely be one to watch out for as he secures a well-earned factory promotion.
Seth Quintero, who won the T3 class in the World Rally-Raid Championship last year, will step up to the top class this year, while Guy Botterill and Saood Variawa will make their first-ever starts in Dakar. Variawa will only be 18 years old when he lines up on the start line at Al-’Ula this Friday, making him one of the youngest works drivers in the rally-raid’s history.
Toyota will contest this year’s Dakar with an upgraded version of the proven Hilux pick-up. Apart from the car being 100mm wider than its predecessor, it features an updated suspension system and a new cooling package, with the air conditioning system being relocated for more efficiency.
Audi
Audi will continue with the same driver line-up for a third year in succession as it aims to bounce back from the disappointment of 2023 and mount a bona fide assault on the overall win. This should come as no surprise to anyone, as Stephane Peterhansel, Carlos Sainz Sr and Mattias Ekstrom are all proven talents, each with an impressive record of their own.
Peterhansel, of course, is the most successful competitor in the history of Dakar, while four-time winner Sainz Sr has shown no signs of slowing down since entering his 60s. Ekstrom, meanwhile, has transferred his speed from circuit racing and rallycross to this discipline and was Audi’s lone remaining finisher in 2023 after Peterhansel and Sainz retired from the rally due to different reasons.
Together, the trio should all be able to challenge for victory, provided the Audi RS Q e-tron proves quick and reliable in equal measure.
For its part, Audi has gone to great lengths to revamp the car after an underwhelming finish in 2023. This year, of course, could be Audi’s final foray into Dakar if the German manufacturer decides to pull the plug on its last remaining factory programme in order to focus on its upcoming Formula 1 project with Sauber in 2026.
As part of the overhaul, almost all components of the car have been reviewed, from the software to the chassis. For starters, the springs and shock absorbers have been updated to improve the balance, while the design changes have also been made to reduce the chances of stones getting caught between the struts, brake calipers and wheels. A significant weight trimming exercise was also undertaken, bringing the car closer to the 2,100kg minimum limit.
Ford
Ford will enter the Dakar Rally as a factory this year to take on existing entrants Prodrive, Toyota and Audi.
2024 will only be an exploratory effort for the American marque, as it enters the field with an updated version of the Ranger built by South Africa-based Neil Woolridge Motorsport. It won’t be until next year that Ford Performance builds an all-new, Dakar-spec Ranger, together with NWM and M-Sport.
But that doesn’t mean one shouldn’t take notice of Ford’s efforts, especially as the very involvement of the American manufacturer and its WRC partner M-Sport could threaten the existing order.
Ford has also signed 2014 winner Nani Roma to lead the programme, with South African Gareth Woolridge driving the other works Ranger. Martin Prokop, who secured a solid sixth-place finish last year in a Ford Raptor, will also be driving a customer-entered Ranger in this year’s event.
Other entrants
Apart from the big four mentioned above, one can expect several other teams to knock on the door of a top 10 finish. X-raid Mini, once a giant of the Dakar Rally, will be back with three cars for one-time European Rally champion Krzysztof Hołowczyc, Lithuanian driver Vaidotas Zala and 19-year-old Pau Navarro.
Brian Baragwanath and Mathieu Serradori have regularly mixed among the leaders with the Century Racing Team and the duo will again be keen to pounce on any opportunity afforded by the frontrunners.
Two-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Romain Dumas will also be one to watch out for as he returns with Rebellion Racing, driving the same Hilux T1+ as the factory team.
The potent Overdrive outfit has also made the best of Toyota machinery in recent years and it could once again be a contender for the odd stage wins, especially with home favourite Yazeed Al-Rajhi.
