Relationship between Carlos Sainz and Nasser Al-Attiyah it’s weird. They are the top rivals on the track, with whom there is a mixture of great respect and rivalry. When they meet in an act, they can be seen talking without any problem, even laughing and joking. When everyone goes their own way, the statement crosses over Dakar they always exist, with ‘darts’ on either side. What is the origin of the rivalry between Sainz and Al-Attiyah? The truth is that unlike other battles between big ‘roosters’, the one between Carlos and Nasser did not have an important explosive moment. It grows as a result of his face-to-face fight for glory in the deserts of the world’s toughest events. In the many editions they have faced, both have developed a rivalry that is pure history of this sport.
“He is a good pilot, but sometimes he loses his temper”
“With Nasser, since 2009, when he was in Mini and I was in Volkswagen… and then Volkswagen in the same team, there are 100,000 anecdotes that he is a character that I will not go to now… he is a very nice guy and you know him, but when it comes to competing He does everything to win. And he has a different kind of philosophy of understanding things than I can have”, Carlos Sainz said a few weeks ago before the Dakar 2023, when asked about his relationship with the Qatari, the current champion of the Dakar. “Having said that, you saw in Extreme E that it doesn’t matter if it’s me or Kristofferson, he poked the person next to him and that’s it and that… then edited the movie he wanted to tell. “, he added between laughs.
“He’s very nice, really, a good pilot. He won’t need those things because he’s a very good driver and he’s one of the big favourites. And I laughed at him outside the car, apart from being a good sportsman. But that failed him, that he put on his helmet and the pot went a little further ”, added. This explanation perfectly sums up the confrontation between two of the best Dakar drivers.
The most famous episode was in 2011
Undoubtedly, the most memorable battle between the two was in 2011. Then they were together at Volkswagen, but they were fighting for the scepter and sparks flew there. On stage 9, a day after Sainz lost his options due to engine problems, the two met. The finale of the special was one of the most important battles in memory, with a merciless fight as both plowed through the dunes close together, squeezing each other like a sprint race.
Other fights: 2019 and 2020
That hand-to-hand fight was repeated in 2019, with another dance on the sands, and in 2020, although for the last time it was on a track. Carlos found himself in front of Nasser and he saw faster. He was cut by 3 minutes due to a puncture by the Toyota driver. He alerted the Qatari to this by activating the sentinel (a device that warns the car in front of a faster car coming from behind). Nasser would have let him pass, paying attention to the regulations, but Nasser did not. Carlos and his co-driver, Lucas Cuz, complained that Al-Attiyah was about 20 kilometers behind them, swallowing dust. Because of this, Mini, Sainz’s team filed a claim at the end of the stage and the Spanish commissioners agreed because Nasser stopped them. It all came down to a 3 minute penalty for the Toyota driver.
Extreme E accident
In the first race of Extreme E in 2022, also in Arabia, in Neom, both met again in the worst way. Nasser Al-Attiyah collided with Carlos and destroyed the car of the Spaniard, who, in anger, demanded punishment for the Qatari.
Cross-references to the latest editions
In that same edition, the battle for the scepter was fierce and Nasser Al-Attiyah never stopped complaining to the journalist about the Mini’s greater suspension travel and its larger wheels, elements that gave way to the Spanish two-wheel drive that MINI to pass faster. through rocky areas suffering from fewer holes, in addition to having excellent performance on all types of terrain. However, Carlos doesn’t want to know anything about the claims of an Al-Attiyah finally getting regulations to allow T1 4x4s like his to be able to match two-wheel drive with longer suspension travel and larger tires thanks to the creation of the new T1+.
Those crossing statements are typical of Dakar. Without further ado, at the 2022 Dakar there was again a lot of tension. Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz, like 90% of the participants, got lost at a point incorrectly indicated in the roadbook on stage 1B. Only Nasser, and Loeb, following the Qatari, were saved that day, having a huge advantage from the start of the rally to fight alone for the victory. Sainz complained about the error in the road book, while Nasser took a dig at the Spaniard’s wound, pointing out that he always complains and they don’t get lost because he and his co-pilot are “better than everyone else”. In that sense, he said that Sainz and Cruz were not competing all year and that he and Baumel, his co-driver, rode the whole World Cup and made the difference. More wood on the fire. However, as usual, Nasser once again showed the other side of the coin, assuring MD that “he has no problem with Sainz.”
And now, before the 2023 Dakar, Nasser redefined the complaints of Carlos, and the Spaniard regrets that the FIA u200bu200bset a minimum weight of 100 kilograms higher for electric or hybrid cars like his and a reduction in their power. . Carlos wants to keep a low profile for the Dakar, giving all favoritism to Al-Attiyah, current champion with 4 crowns. And Nasser accepted it with pleasure. Furthermore, he continued the typical psychological warfare between him and Carlos, making sure that “my great battle in this Dakar 2023 is not with Carlos, it is with Sébastien Loeb”. He started by ignoring his rival and believing “it will not be an easy rally for Audi”.
The controversy in social networks of 2021
Another notable episode between Carlos Sainz and Nasser Al-Attiyah was the one that took place in the 2021 Andalusia Rally, before the Dakar of 2022. Al-Attiyah made a senseless cut on a road and received two minutes punishment that prevented him from achieving success in general. After that, Carlos Sainz wanted to make it clear to the public that this was not acceptable in a statement through his social networks.
“Skiping the course is not only unsporting, but endangers future editions of this wonderful rally and, worse, endangers the public and other competitors,” he said in his message to Twitter, which attached a video of Al’s action. -Attiyah.
Far from remaining silent, Nasser decided to respond with another video from the newspaper library. He posted a video from years ago of Sainz cutting a different path. “Do you remember the cut you made in the field at Baja Aragón 2017?” Al-Attiyah replied, although what he did not remember was that the context of the two pictures was different. ASO, the company organization of the Andalusian race, made it clear to all competitors that it does not accept anyone to shorten the marked path for the 2021 edition and anyone who does so will be excluded.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
