Out of the 472 competitors in all four categories, only 3 Arab drivers will start the 2013 edition of the renowned Dakar Rally: Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiyah, Egypt’s Tarek El Erian and UAE’s Abdulla Al Heraiz.
Nasser Al-Attiyah – who’s backed by Qatar and Red Bull – turned to Baja specialist, Demon Jefferies, for his ride this year: a modest Buggy. The 2011 Dakar winner doesn’t expect a victory this year though, and has given himself three years to win the rally in the all-new buggy.
Tarek El Erian meanwhile, will enter the history books for being the first Egyptian driver to tackle the Dakar Rally. Dakar has been a passion of his ever since it set foot in Egypt back in 2003. El Erian will be competing in a Desert Warrior prepared by Rally Raid UK.
Last of the Arab drivers is Abdulla Al Heraiz, who’ll be taking part in Dakar for the third consecutive year. He finished the previous 2011 and 2012 races in excellent 26th and 29th positions respectively. Al Heraiz will be driving a KDJ 120 Toyota in the T2 category this year.
The 2013 Dakar Rally will kick off on January 5 from the Peruvian capital Lima, and will end 15 days later in Chile’s capital Santiago, with drivers having covered a total distance of 5,711 kilometers.