Peter Lyon
January 18, 2025
Toyota has done it again. Yazeed Al-Rajhi won the Dakar Rally against all odds by outperforming factory Toyota Gazoo Racing competitor Henk Lategan by 3 minutes 57 seconds in a customer Hilux. The Gazoo team, who won back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, snatched the win after defending champion Carlos Sainz Sr crashed out on Stage 2 and was forced to retire by the FIA when he damaged his roll cage.
Toyota Is Dominant In 2025 Dakar Rally
In fact, the 47th Dakar Rally became essentially an all-Toyota event, with last year’s winner Audi withdrawing and newcomers Ford and Dacia still getting their footing in cross-country rallying.
However, after two weeks of rallying in his native Saudi Arabia, privateer Al-Rajhi emerged victorious for Overdrive, despite Toyota fielding five cars on a factory basis.
Lategan had been ahead of Al-Rajhi in the overall rankings for a long time. The South African took use of his consistency to keep his lead against a competitor who was maybe faster on speed alone.
After winning the eighth stage on Monday, Lategan seemed to have solidified his chances of victory, but a navigational blunder at the beginning of the next stage in Haradh gave Al-Rajhi the lead and blew the rally wide open.
In an attempt to restore the status quo, the factory Toyota driver rallied on Stage 10, but as Dakar descended farther into the Empty Quarters desert, his inability to handle dunes proved to be his downfall.
A below-par performance on the second last day decided the rally in Al-Rajhi’s favour, with the Saudi driver snatching the opportunity to take the lead and then bring it home on Friday.
The 43-year-old proved his class by provisionally winning the 48-hour runs in Bisha, after that very stage forced him into retirement last year. Although the result was later revised in favour of his team-mate Rokas Baciuska, the performance established Al-Rajhi as Lategan’s strongest rival in what turned out to be a two driver race for victory.
Despite a few setbacks, including a tardy performance on Stage 10 where he lost nine minutes to Lategan, he recovered quickly the next day and won the event.
The always dependable Ekstrom took over for the American manufacturer after Carlos Sainz Sr. was forced to retire. After persistently fighting for individual stage victories, the Swede secured the final podium position with a victory on Stage 11.
A disgruntled Nasser Al-Attiyah finished fourth in the best of the Sandriders, allowing Ford to defeat fellow rookie Dacia.
Similar to Ford, the Renault Group brand Dacia suffered an early setback when Sebastien Loeb was forced to leave the competition because of a damaged vehicle.
CARLIST THOUGHTS
Toyota’s Gazoo Racing is on a roll in the world of rallying having won the WRC manufacturer’s title last last year and now capturing the Dakar Rally with a strong finish. The brand has also been doing very well in the Le Mans 24-Hours, having won 5 times. And after entering into a technical partnership in 2024 with Haas, Toyota’s full return to F1 may be on the cards.
