2012 Dakar Discussion

Site is going to be undergoing a facelift in the next few weeks & as in previous years, Dakar group will have the stage by stage discussion.

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Permalink Reply by Vlad Rogers on December 6, 2011 at 11:29am

Its official!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now why didnt Robby announce it yesterday, or Sunday??? O well, still really great news!!!

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Permalink Reply by TOG on December 6, 2011 at 11:32am

probably because it was Al Attiyah's deal to announce & he did so on his own terms.

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Permalink Reply by Bruce Smith on December 6, 2011 at 11:42am

I don't think that anyone on this forum knows what Al-Attiyah's background really is. Saying he is only a short WB turbo Diesel 4WD racer is probably a big mistake. For all we know he has a shop full of rear engined V-8 buggies in his shop in Qatar. I just don't think any of us know what his total driving skills are.

And look at this in reverse. Didn't Robby get into the turbo Diesel 4WD Volkswagen and do well? Guys like Robby and probably Al-Attiyah will go fast in anything with 4 tires and a number on the side.

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Permalink Reply by Kenneth Earnest on December 6, 2011 at 1:06pm

I was in no way saying he could not do it, drivers at that skill level can pretty much drive anything. I was just trying to temper some of the enthusiasm about how now we have two on the podium (I hope we do, Robby 1st and Nasser 2nd). I was commenting on the short time frame, and the handling (including throttle response) that has to become natural (no thinking about it) to be competitive for the podium. If you have to think about what you need to do, you are slow. Remember Robby had months of driving the VW before he drove it in Dakar the first time.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Reeves on December 6, 2011 at 1:11pm

Nasser is top drawer - his pedigree in Europe and indeed the Middle East is absolutely there - he has moved between rally raid, world rally, IRC, the lot. Nasser has great backing from Qatar and Barwa, and the full support of the ruling family kingdom in Qatar as a great sporting ambassador for them. This is a fantastic deal for Robby and RGM, and takes the team to a new level. Well done everyone at RGM, can't wait for the start of Dakar now!!!!

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Permalink Reply by ivanspeed on December 6, 2011 at 1:11pm

them arabs own alot of LS2 high dollar sand cars

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Permalink Reply by Vlad Rogers on December 6, 2011 at 11:31am

http://www.dakar.com/dakar/2012/us/out-of-race/news-page-1.html

Al Attiyahs Surprise: The Bad Boy Gordons Hummer! Car number 300 that is usually kept for the title holder will finally be present at the start of the 2012 Dakar. It will indeed be set on a Hummer that Nasser Al Attiyah will be driving for Team Robby Gordon, with Lucas Cruz as his co-driver.

"As of now, everyone will know where Qatar is on the map of the world", those were the words of Nasser Al Attiyah after capturing his first victory on the Dakar last January in Buenos Aires. Achieving his dream after a fantastic battle with team mate Carlos Sainz, the flying Qatari was forced to settle with the strategic choices of Volkswagen that left him without a steering wheel after retiring from off-road rallies. Always keen for new projects, Al Attiyah bounced back once again in style and will live a rather busy 2012 year, including a WRC season, the London Olympics in shooting and of course a mouth-watering start with the Dakar where he will defend his title in a … Hummer!

His name was announced or whispered in all the title-contending teams, but it will finally be as Robby Gordon's team mate that Al Attiyah will start the 2012 Dakar. And Qatar hasn't finished gaining in notoriousness: indeed the Hummer H3 that will be prepared for him by the North Carolina based team will be carrying the colours of his country. "The thought of not doing the Dakar almost made me sick but things eventually turned around. It's fantastic because it's a new challenge for me and I'm proud of being able to represent Qatar", insisted a delighted Nasser who doesn't forget that his main goal will be to manage a double on the Dakar, a performance that only Ari Vatanen has achieved in two different cars (1990-1991 / Peugeot-Citroën). Until now, the best performance of the Hummer was third spot back on the 2009 Dakar when Gordon had only been beaten by the Race Touareg VWs of Giniel De Villiers and Mark Miller. With a virtuoso of the calibre of Al Attiyah and a totally new panorama in terms of title contenders, all hopes are alive.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Allen on December 6, 2011 at 12:20pm

I think this is absolutely awesome. I guess I'll assume that unless something goes haywire with one Hummer in a stage where they lose a ton of time that this is being worked as co-#1 drivers? In other words I don't assume that Nassir signed up to be Robby's glorified tow truck from the get-go as BJ and Eliseo were supposed to be correct?