Five-time Dakar winner Nasser Al-Attiyah will drive the 2024 edition of the world’s toughest rally in a Prodrive Hunter.
“The Prodrive Hunter is a sensational car. I think after three trips already to the Dakar and two second place finishes, now it’s time for this car to win the Dakar.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Al-Attiyah will return to Saudi Arabia next January to race his 20th edition of the Dakar Rally. During the past two decades the Qatari driver has become one of the most recognisable and well-liked personalities at the rally.
Al-Attiyah’s first Dakar win came in 2011 and he followed that up with two more victories in South America (2015 & 2019). Since the Dakar’s switch to the Middle East there have been two more wins for Al-Attiyah in Saudi Arabia (2022 & 2023).
“For me it would be a third consecutive win and the fourth different manufacturer I’ve taken to victory at the Dakar.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Al-Attiyah not only has the chance to make it three wins on the spin at the 2024 Dakar, but he’ll also be attempting to make the Prodrive Hunter the fourth different car he has driven to victory at the rally. His first outing in the Prodrive Hunter will be this weekend at the Baja Portalegre 500 (Portugal) before a trip to the Dubai International Baja (UAE) ahead of the next Dakar.
“I want to make myself part of Dakar history and the best way to do that is to win with four different brands.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Riding shotgun with Al-Attiyah at his four most recent Dakar wins has been co-driver Mathieu Baumel. This duo’s understanding of each other seems telepathic at times as Baumel reads the roadbook and Al-Attiyah steers them over the dunes. The pair’s success has not been limited to the Dakar, they’re also winners of the 2022 & 2023 FIA World Rally-Raid Championship driver and co-driver titles. Al-Attiyah and Baumel will race next year’s FIA World Rally-Raid Championship in the Prodrive Hunter.
Al-Attiyah’s move to Prodrive continues the team’s philosophy of bringing together the world’s greatest drivers with one of the most advanced cross-country rally cars ever created. Al-Attiyah and Prodrive now team up to test themselves at the toughest race on the planet.. the Dakar Rally.
“During the last two years the Hunter car has finished in second position at the Dakar with Seb (Loeb) driving. I think with both me and Seb driving this will be a really strong team at the next Dakar.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
The Prodrive Hunter has been designed with one purpose in mind – to cross any terrain at high speed. From rocky roads to open desert, sand dunes and mountain passes, nothing stands in its way. It’s also powered by a new sustainable fuel, Prodrive EcoPower, which reduces its carbon emissions by 80 percent to help fight climate change.
“I think we have a package here to win the Dakar. Everything that Prodrive does is always very professional and the standards are very high.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Sharing the Prodrive paddock with Al-Attiyah in the bivouacs of the 2024 Dakar will be his new team-mate Sébastien Loeb. As rivals Al-Attiyah and Loeb have enjoyed some epic battles in the desert. At the last two editions of the Dakar it has been Loeb who has finished as runner-up to Al-Attiyah. Now the two fierce competitors come together as team-mates looking to deliver a first Dakar victory for the Prodrive Hunter.
“This is the first time I will be a team-mate of Seb (Loeb) at the Dakar, but I already know him very well. He really is a great driver and the speed he has shown at the Dakar for these last two years has been incredible.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
The Dakar’s fifth edition in Saudi Arabia will get started on January 5 before the chequered flag flies on January 19, 2024. The 5,000 kilometres of racing distance spread across 12 timed special stages departs from the thousand-year-old city of Al Ula, crossing the country in the direction of the Empty Quarter and finishing in Yanbu on the shores of the Red Sea.
Bonus Nasser Fact
In addition to rally wins all over the globe, Al-Attiyah is the only driver at the Dakar with an Olympic medal. He won bronze for Qatar at the men’s skeet shooting event in London in 2012.
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