The Dakar challenge is not just a question of driving skill and navigational expertise. He Repsol Toyota Rally Team runs a second parallel race every day, to ensure perfect attendance at Isidre Esteve and Txema Villalobos. In this way, Toyota Hilux T1+ number 235 You can approach each new stage to the best of your ability. Dakar 2024 starts on January 5 in Saudi Arabia. Let’s take a closer look at how the team supports the Repsol, MGS Seguros, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Spain and KH-7 in the toughest race in motorsport.
To begin with, there is preliminary work that begins about six months before the Dakar, which consists of making a complete forecast of all the material the team will need. “We don’t ask for things today and they will come tomorrow. To organize ourselves as much as possible, we have a lot to expect,” explained Isidre Esteve. “We have to order the material around the month of June to get it in October, after Morocco Rally. That’s when we work the most on the car. In fact, we are making it almost new for the Dakar,” said the pilot from Ilerd.
This initial preparation is followed by the logistical challenge of racing in the field. He Repsol Toyota Rally Team It consists of three mechanics and a physical trainer, and is completed with the help of Toyota Overdrive. “Our closest core is our mechanics David Pigem, David Fabrellas and Carles Méndez. Then Lidia Guerrero, who takes care of my daily physical recovery. They move from camp to camp with our T5 truck and the mechanic’s 4×4,” detailed the pilot.
“What matters is the whole; the sum of the two structures. At Toyota Overdrive we have a T4 help truck on the track, full of spare parts, with an engineer and a mechanic, to solve possible problems in the middle of the special. At the end of the stage we have their trucks with spare parts and their engineers are experts in every aspect of the car (data, transmission, suspension, electronics…)”, Esteve values.
He crew chief David Pigem define this distribution of tasks. “We carry a little bit of everything, basically consumables. Repsol lubricants, brake discs, pads, ball joints, bearings, filters, rims… All the most common materials replaced. And all the big materials, such as gearboxes and differentials, are carried by Toyota Overdrive, “lists this mechanic from Girona, with experience in the World Rally Championship, who has worked with Isidre Esteve and Txema Villalobos since the driver’s return from Oliana to the Dakar, in 2017, thanks to the development of a smart pillow, which allows you to ride without fear of pressure ulcers on the butt.
6,200 liters of renewable fuel
Isidre has always had support Repsol, KH-7 and MGS Seguros, which provides a great example of team collaboration and understanding. In 2021, Toyota joined them, with the first Hilux with adapted driving controls on the steering wheel. In 2024, for the third consecutive year, the Repsol Toyota Rally Team will use Repsol’s renewable fuel at the Dakar, now made 70% from organic waste, with the aim of continuing the transition towards zero emissions. Last October, the team moved 6,200 liters of it Repsol renewable fuel in Saudi Arabia. The Dakar organization is in charge of transporting it to the different camps, in 200-liter drums.
Returning to the specific logistics of the group, the Repsol Toyota Rally Team It transports all its materials in its own workshop truck which also serves as accommodation for the mechanics and pilots. All materials are neatly arranged in boxes. “Each box has a specific material and a label that indicates what’s inside, so we know at all times where everything is,” explained Pigem. “In Dakar, time is money; “It’s about optimizing it to the maximum.”
Isidre Esteve He concluded: “This way of organizing ourselves, with the most basic material breakdown in our own truck, allows us to be selfless and agile in helping quickly. And then we have Toyota Overdrive on our side if we need any other help. The success of the Repsol Toyota Rally Team in Dakar, then, did not depend only on Isidre’s driving and Txema’s navigation; Behind it is a whole team, agile and integrated, forming a big little family.
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.
