Last year, the Amaury Sport Organisation announced Dakar Future, the ambitious plan for an entirely zero-emission car and truck field by 2030. It’ll be Audi Sport leading the charge from as early as next year, when it becomes the first manufacturer to compete in the gruelling rally raid with an electrified powertrain. Having now secured three illustrious driver teams comprising a Dakar record winner, World Rally champion and DTM champion, the team hopes to set a new standard in electric cross-country rallying.
Audi EVs to tackle Dakar Rally
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From 2nd January to 14th, 2022, the pairings of Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist (Sweden), Stéphane Peterhansel and Edouard Boulanger (France), and Carlos Sainz Sr. and Lucas Cruz (Spain) will compete for the manufacturer in Saudi Arabia, the new home of the rally.
They will pilot the all-wheel-drive electric prototype that Audi has been developing in collaboration with Q Motorsport, headed by former X-raid boss Sven Quandt. Quandt isn’t the only Mini alumni involved in the project, as both the Peterhansel-Boulanger and Sainz-Cruz pairings having won this and last year’s events respectively for the German team.
“It’s no exaggeration to speak of a ‘dream team’,” Audi Sport GmbH Managing Director Julius Seebach commented. “Stéphane is the most successful Dakar driver of all time. Carlos is a multiple Dakar winner and World Rally champion.
“With Mattias, we already celebrated many Audi successes in the past. He is one of the world’s most versatile drivers. In addition to a lot of speed, they are all adding an extreme amount of expertise and motivation to our team. The same goes for their co-drivers, who play an increasingly important role in the Dakar Rally.”
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Mr Dakar himself, Peterhansel, 55, counts no less than 14 Dakar victories to his name – six on a motorcycle and eight in a car.
“The Dakar is one of the last adventures in this world,” he commented. “And it is on the verge of a radical change: the future is electric. In ten years, everyone will be driving electric cars. The Dakar is an extreme test for this technology. We want to be the first team to win the Dakar Rally with an electric powertrain. I’m looking forward to tackling this very ambitious project with Audi.”
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Spaniard Sainz has also been a long-time frontrunner in the Dakar, with three victories under his belt – along with two World Rally championship titles. He will share the cockpit with Lucas Cruz, 46, who in turn counts two decades of rally experience.
“The Audi quattro changed the World Rally Championship forever,” said Sainz. “Now we are trying something similar at the Dakar Rally. The engineers have much more freedom in the Dakar Rally than in other racing series. I have full confidence in the Audi engineers and will try to help them with my experience to develop a fast and successful car. The Dakar is the ultimate challenge for an electric powertrain. It is a fantastic, extreme project. I can’t wait to test the car for the first time. What I’ve seen so far gives me confidence.”
Finally, 42-year-old Ekström is a successful Audi stalwart, with two DTM titles and a World Rallycross Championship. After debuting in the Dakar this year, while also racing in Extreme E electric off-road series, he has joined Audi to race with Emil Bergkvist, 26, for 2022.
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