Al Attiyah eyes third Dakar Rally win

Bengaluru/Lima, December 15: Two-time champion Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah and co-driver Mathieu Baumel arrive at the 2018 Dakar Rally with a clear target - win the race to hand Toyota their first victory at the famous rally.

Behind the wheel of Toyota Hilux, Al Attiyah goes into the New Year determined to score the third Dakar title of his illustrious rallying career, following his previous triumphs in 2011 and 2015.

#DriverOfTheDay #TeamUpWithBFG

Name: @AlAttiyahN 🇶🇦
N° in the race 🏁: 3⃣0⃣1⃣
Co-pilot 🧘: @matthieubaumel 🇨🇵
Team 🤝 : #ToyotaGazooRacingSA
Achievements 🏆:
▶ ️ Dakar Rally 2017: //
▶ ️ 2016 Dakar 2nd
▶ ️ 2015 Dakar winner
▶ ️ 2011 Dakar winner pic.twitter.com/I1R7Uq5pXM

— BFGoodrich Europe (@BFGoodrichEU) December 13, 2017

To give themselves the greatest chance of success the Qatari driver and the team have been working tirelessly throughout the year to ensure they arrive in South America in top form.

Al Attiyah and his French co-driver Baumel have been in imperious form all year as they won FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rally World Cup events in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kazakhstan, Spain, Hungry, Poland and Morocco.

Al Attiyah gears up for Dakar Rally

These victories handed Al Attiyah and Baumel a third consecutive FIA Cross-Country Rally World Cup title.

"My target is the same as it always is before the Dakar, I'm going there to win the rally. Together with the team we'll be going there with the intention of having a really enjoyable race with lots of special moments we can all share," said Al Attiyah.

While winning rallies all over the world Al Attiyah has been working alongside the mechanics and engineers of Belgium's Overdrive and Toyota Gazoo Racing in South Africa to make improvements to the vehicle they will bring to the next Dakar.

The Toyota Hilux that comes to Lima to take on motorsport's toughest test of endurance has been completely revamped over the past 12 months.

"Giving Toyota their first Dakar win would be right up there with the best achievements of my career," added Al Attiyah.

The 40th edition of the Dakar Rally will be held from January 6 to 20 and it will cover three countries -- Argentina, Bolivia and Peru.