POMONA, CALIFORNIA – Motul, manufacturer of world class lubricants, will once again take on the most grueling motorsport event in the world, the Dakar Rally. The legendary race pits the world’s greatest off-road drivers against amateur competitors, Dakar often being the culmination of their life’s dreams.
The 2014 edition of the rally will run January 5 – 18 across Argentina, Bolivia and Chile and will include 34 Motul-supported entries. The entries will compete in all four main categories – bike, quad, car and truck. The 450 vehicles due to take the start of the rally will go on to cover 9,000 kilometers (nearly 5,600 miles) through South America. New for 2014 is a separation of routes for 40% of the total distance for motorcycles and quads, versus that of the cars and trucks. With safety as a driving force, five special stages have been marked out on completely separate routes covering around 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) of timed sections.
The Dakar is the world’s greatest rally raid adventure and there is no room for any mechanical weakness. Motul has proven itself to be reliable in this arena, and its technical partners/racers will be using specially adapted lubricants, maintenance products and coolants from its Motorsport Line (Auto) and Factory Line (Moto.) The main product is Motul’s 300V range for high performance and maximum protection. The terrain, climate and conditions endured by the Dakar’s competitors can be punishing. From the icy cold of the mountains to the searing heat of the desert, Motul’s products must withstand every extreme in this ‘living laboratory.’
Motorcycle and ATV
Headlining the Motul line-up is Team HRC which is returning to the Dakar with full Honda factory backing and aiming for victory in the motorcycle category. A veteran five-time Dakar winner, the Honda HRC squad will field a strong international rider line up: 2013 World Cross Country Rally Champion Paulo Goncalves and Helder Rodriguez from Portugal; Briton Sam Sunderland who won the 2013 Merzouga Rally; Javier Pizzolito of Argentina and Spaniard Joan Barreda, who won four stages in the 2013 Dakar.
Also in the motorcycle class are the four riders of the Honda LATAM team, led by 13-time Women’s Trials World Champion and 10-time Women’s Trials European Champion in Outdoor Motorcycle Trials, Laia Sanz of Spain. Jean de Azevedo of Brazil, Claudio Rodriguez of Chile and Frenchman Thierry Traccan will be riding Honda LATAM CRF 450s. Three other individual South American entries will also receive Motul’s support, one of them being Pablo Quintanilla, 2013 winner of Dakar Series – DesafÃo Inca. In the Quad class, Motul is backing the Uruguay Rally Team and Hernandez Racing from Peru.
Car and Truck
The largest representation of Motul-supported teams is in the Cars category and will include Motul’s newest Dakar partner, Xtrem Plus. The team benefits from the support of Polaris USA, and the line-up includes the winner of the 2013 Dakar (category T3), William Alcaraz. However, the spotlight will also be on the all-new EVR Proto VX Rally Raid Concept owned by Eric Vigouroux. It will be driven by 2009 Rally Raid world champion and seven-time Dakar competitor, Guerlain Chicherit.
No fewer than seven MD Rallye Sport entries have been submitted by the largest privateer team in the field, including a Springbock for Etienne Smulevici who will enter the Dakar for a record-breaking 32nd time. Driving an Optimus, Pascal Thomasse and Pascal Larroque will be keen to improve upon the 9th place finish they claimed last year. Two entries from Toyota Auto Body, a multiple past winner in the T2 category, round out Motul’s representation in Cars.
Finally, in Trucks, the trio of vehicles from the Belarus MAZ factory team will be supported by Motul Russia. For more information, log on to www.motul.com.
Photo: Rallyzone