• 413-kilometer loop around Bisha with challenges for drivers and co-drivers is the true prelude to the 2025 Dakar Rally
• Pace stage before the big hammer: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk skillfully dose the “Dakar” urge, but also lose time with numerous technical problems
• Nevertheless, 21st place on the day and 21st overall for the runners-up mean a good starting position for the 48-hour stage on Sunday and Monday

Bisha, Saudi Arabia (January 4, 2025) – Once through the “Dakar” problem list: Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk maintained a good starting position on the first day of the Dakar Rally despite numerous niggles. First the reverse gear failed due to gearbox problems, then the main GPS. While switching to the reserve system, Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk caught a Rio dead end in a navigationally blind flight and had to free themselves from the situation with a lot of driving skill. However, with 21st place on the day and overall, the starting position remains good, especially with a view to the upcoming task. Because the toughest rally in the world has a special marathon within a marathon on the program for the next two days: the 48-hour stage, including an overnight stay in the desert. Extremely rocky terrain is expected for the start on Sunday and the end on Monday, which means a high risk of tire damage. Those who start the route early are at a clear disadvantage as “road sweepers”. This role will then fall to Guerlain Chicherit/Alex Winocq (FRA/FRA, Mini), who won the first leg of the Dakar Rally and now lead the overall standings. Al-Rajhi/Gottschalk, like almost all the top teams, accepted a gap that currently stands at 10:28 minutes. Versatility was already required on the first “real” day of the Dakar Rally: The participants had to constantly adjust their speed on different surfaces, especially on stony sections. Around the halfway point of the special stage, precise navigation in a labyrinth of paths was a decisive factor. The first 150 kilometers led without exception through wadis and over fast sandy tracks, including beautiful landscapes. The following 60 kilometers or so challenged the riders with fast gravel roads before the route led into the mountains up to kilometer 240. A short, 13-kilometre neutralization on asphalt was followed by another 80 kilometers of fast, wide tracks. The finale consisted of fast trails through canyons and short off-piste sections that led to the finish directly at the bivouac in Bisha.

QUOTES

“We had imagined the first stage of the Dakar Rally would be easier. Right from the start, reverse gear and neutral failed in the gearbox, we were stuck for a long time in the dust of someone in front who didn’t want to make way despite the sentinel. We got the route wrong twice. The navigation system also failed at times … We’ll take today as a dress rehearsal where everything went wrong. Then tomorrow’s premiere with the queen stage of the first week can only be a success.”
YAZEED AL-RAJHI

“Today we had all the ‘Dakar’ problems there are – except for punctures. First gearbox problems, then we made two wrong turns in the dust of the car in front. When the main GPS failed, we took a wrong turn while switching to the reserve system – a dead end in a Rio. Without reverse gear, we lost a lot of time. Without Sentinel and without GPS, we ended up driving carefully so as not to endanger the motorcyclists we had to overtake.”
TIMO GOTTSCHALK