Al-Attiyah, an insatiable champion: “I’m going for Peterhansel’s record”

Nasser Al-Attiyah it will remain the same. Dakar after Dakar, his personality does not change. The 52-year-old Qatari (December 21, 1970, Doha, Qatar) stands out for his duality. Inside the track he has no friends. In competition, in front of the microphones, he always speaks his mind and does not hesitate to get into the pain of his rivals. He complained about the Audi’s power surge once the race started. Dakar and the next day he won the stage and attacked his rivals saying “they have increased their power, but I make the difference.”

Off the trail, he stands out for his unity. During his many years of racing in the sport, he helped many pilots in their careers. He didn’t hesitate to give a chance to a photographer he met at a rally who is now his personal assistant and one of his most trusted people, the Catalan Jordi Vidal. and in Dakar 2022he lends his car to a competitor whose engine catches fire before he starts, or he helps a team of Dakar Classic to find him a room in Riyadh they could not live without.

Dealing with the press is great. He never refuses to speak, ever. Anytime. Even when MD caught him in the afternoon of stage 10 in the full test of the sleeping bag and blankets he would bring to spend the night in the always strange stage of the marathon. Nor in the previous conquest of his fifth title Dakarian. He doesn’t turn down photos with fans, and he doesn’t stop everyone passing by his tent to congratulate him. On Saturday, the Toyota team was crowded against the Hilux from Qatari. Nasser, far from nervous about having his fifth scepter to play with and being confined to his caravan, strolled around the ‘services‘ of Toyota attends to everyone who wishes to greet him. He said to be calm and live “a normal day” despite the greatness of the milestone he would achieve the next morning.

He couldn’t do the ritual of each day, sitting by the fire with his co-pilot and team to drink Arabic coffee, tea and enjoy a few dates with peanut butter always waiting for him at table in front of his house. with wheels’. And if you visit him, he does not hesitate to tell you to sit next to him and join the conversation, sitting on some rugs, in the warmth of the fire.

Half a heart in Catalonia

Nasser is a man with two faces. A car predator and a great host. they know it at Castellfollit del Boix, between Manresa and Igualadawhere he has a farm and off road circuit, the Nasser Racing Camp which he inaugurated by inviting the entire town to a barbecue and surprising them with a co-pilot experience in the right seat of his volkswagen polo of rallies. Nasser has a heart in Barça, his great idol is Messi and loving Catalonia. In the aforementioned population he spends a long time staying with his family.

“I spend many days a year there. I often go to Barcelona because I love it. There I can properly execute my training plan, preparing myself for the forest and my circuit. It was great to spend time there with my family,” he said. Al Attiyah in MD, hoping that the current generation of young Barça players will continue to grow so that their team at the heart will return to the path of success, the same one that continues to have a Nasser made it very clear in MD: “I’m not afraid of anything.”

Live with a smile, have a positive character and always think that you can win. This is the Dakarian champion, a lover of hunting and also of clay pigeon shooting, a sport in which He won the bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in the skeet modality.

He never gets tired of winning: “I’m going for the record”

“If I’m the best pilot? If you win last year and you win this year, of course, I’m the best driver”, he laughed and taught MD before winning his 5th Dakarian title. “I don’t want to say, but, for for me, I think next year we will be stronger, it seems that our opponents are a bit older and that’s the game… remember when Michael Schumacher won seven times… Same with ‘ Si Seb’ (Loeb) , who won nine times, but everything comes to an end, the new generations control everything and it seems the same will happen in Cross-Country, at an age where it is not easy, we will see what the Dakar has in store for us” , more.

Nasser wants to take advantage of his good form and keep winning. So this hunger, along with his self-confidence, ensures that goes for the record 8 Dakar titles in Peterhansel’s car.

“I want to break Stéphane’s (Peterhansel) record in cars, I don’t know how many he has, I think eight, but it’s not a problem, it just takes time, we can do it”, said the pilot of 52 yearswho wants to continue at the highest level about “10 more years”.

But Peterhansel’s record isn’t the only thing he’s looking at. Also Vatanen’s 50 wins. Al Attiyah has won three stages in the Dakar 2023 and he is 47, two less than peterhansel and three less than Finnish. He left that challenge for next year and didn’t hesitate to make sure he achieved it in 2024: “Next year I will.” Nasser wanted to continue to succeed.