Audi Secures Historic Victory at Dakar Rally
Audi made history as, for the first time, a low-emission prototype with an electric drive, high-voltage battery, and energy converter won the world’s toughest desert rally with the Audi RS Q e-tron. The Spaniards Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz secured Audi’s first victory in the Dakar Rally after around 7,900 kilometres with a lead of 1 hour, 20 minutes. Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist also crossed the finish line.
The Audi RS Q e-tron has electric all-wheel drive, where the energy supply is ensured by a high-voltage battery and an energy converter that runs on residual fuel-based reFuel, thus saving 60 percent of CO2 emissions compared to conventional fuels.
At the Dakar Rally, Audi was up against the two brands Toyota and Ford, as well as the experienced opponents from Prodrive, who proved to be tough challengers.
Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz secured their big lead after having been in the lead without interruption since the sixth stage. For the two Spaniards, who finished first in 2010, 2018, and 2020, this is their fourth success with a different brand, including the second from the Volkswagen Group. However, two-time World Rally Champion Sainz and his experienced co-driver could not be sure until shortly before the end. With Sébastien Loeb and Fabian Lurquin from Team BRX, they had strong pursuers who continued to close the gap until their car suffered damage on the penultimate day.
Daily stages of often more than 400 kilometres, two marathon stages with limited or even no service, as well as 4,600 timed kilometres and 7,883 kilometres in total, characterised the 2024 Dakar Rally. Sharp scree and gravel roads, but also towering chains of dunes in the Empty Quarter of the Arabian Peninsula and often difficult navigation, demanded everything from the teams. Carlos Sainz, who, at 61, looks back on a rally career spanning around four decades, recorded a total of eight days in the lead with Lucas Cruz on the twelve stages.
The two other Audi crews had also put in a strong performance early on. The Swedes Mattias Ekström/Emil Bergkvist won the prologue at the beginning and improved to second place behind Sainz/Cruz by the rest day after six stages. However, a defect on the rear axle on the seventh stage cost them all their chances.
Stéphane Peterhansel, the record holder with 14 Dakar victories, was in sixth place shortly before the halfway point after his 50th stage win in the car and his 83rd overall. A defect in the hydraulic system threw him and his French compatriot Edouard Boulanger back to 22nd place on the sixth stage.
Both teams then put themselves at the service of Team Audi Sport. Head of Audi Motorsport Rolf Michl and Sven Quandt, Team Principal of the entry partner Q Motorsport, implemented a perfect strategy in the demanding 46th edition of the rally.
Whether it was tactically dropping back before the second marathon stage to avoid having to open the route or supporting the leaders, Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz, the management was able to rely on its strong driver crews at all times. The team personnel also worked tirelessly and reliably during the physically demanding, long, and tough rally. Ekström/Bergkvist finished the event in the top 50.
Audi Sport has let the highly efficient Audi RS Q e-tron mature so that it is capable of winning within just three years. Under the technical direction of Dr. Leonardo Pascali, Audi Sport set the next historic milestone with the innovative drive. Audi’s first all-electric racing car then made its debut in Formula E, before the brand took on the extreme challenges of the Dakar Rally and successfully completed it as the first manufacturer with an electric drive.
