00:00The Dakar features four categories of vehicles through which participants can compete.
00:09These include motorcycles, cars, trucks, and the lightweight cross-country vehicles,
00:16also known as side-by-side vehicles.
00:18The motorcycles, les motos.
00:21This category consists of two groups.
00:23The best-known one is Rally GP.
00:25These elite riders represent the best, and they are equipped with distinctive yellow number plates.
00:31The second one is the Rally 2.
00:34Within the overall motorcycle category, the vast majority of the riders are amateurs.
00:39However, for safety reasons, there is a very strict selection process
00:42to make sure that all the competitors have the required physical, mental, and technical abilities to participate.
00:49Another group within this category is the original bimotor category.
00:53This consists of bikes' competitors competing without any kind of assistance
00:57who have limited resources and equipment.
01:00As a result, a specific competition rule applies for competitors under this category.
01:05You can learn more about these groups by watching our dedicated video.
01:09Some of the famous names to come out of the motorcycle category
01:13include inaugural Dakar winner Cyril Neveu, who went on to win the category five times,
01:18and Marc Coma, who has won the category five times,
01:21and Stéphane Péter-Hansel, who has won the category the most, with six wins.
01:27The cars.
01:29The cars category consists of two main groups or types of vehicle driven by a driver and navigator.
01:34The first and most recognizable are mainly prototype vehicles
01:38that meet FIA technical standards and safety regulations.
01:42Although they may be based on the bodywork of an existing commercial vehicle,
01:46any similarity is largely superficial, as they are heavily modified.
01:51Designed and developed for competition and racing,
01:54they are the ultimate category,
01:55the fastest and often the most impressive vehicles on the Dakar circuit,
01:59and are certainly not found in dealerships.
02:03The second group within the car category can however be found within a dealership.
02:08Based on a production vehicle,
02:10modifications are made following a highly regulated
02:12and primarily safety-oriented preparation.
02:16These include roll cage, bucket seats and fuel techs,
02:19as well as modification to such things as the chassis, suspension and tires
02:23in order to better equip and fortify the car for the rigors of the car.
02:27This second group is the stock.
02:32Famous competitors within the car category include
02:34Stefan Petterhansel, who following his success in the motorcycles,
02:38won the race eight times in a car,
02:40Nasser Al-Attiyah with five wins,
02:43and Carlos Sainz with four.
02:46As well as Jutta Kleinschmidt,
02:48who in 1998 became the first female to win a stage in Dakar,
02:52later going on to surpass that feat,
02:54when in 2001, behind the wheel of a Mitsubishi,
02:58she became the first woman to win the overall event.
03:02The trucks.
03:03Like the cars, the truck category is made up of two different groups
03:06and consists of a driver, navigator and mechanic.
03:10The first is the race trucks,
03:11whose objective is to win the Dakar in the truck category.
03:15Often prototype-based trucks,
03:16it is possible to recognize the bodywork and brand of the truck at first glance.
03:20Lightweight, powerful and imposing,
03:23their cargo hold is in fact almost completely empty.
03:27For safety reasons, their top speed is limited,
03:29but regardless can often pass the cars in competition.
03:33Then there is the fast assistance trucks,
03:35which serve as rolling workshops
03:36and can also assist other types of vehicles in need.
03:40Although their purpose is primarily to assist the race vehicles,
03:43the race among the assistance vehicles to reach the next bivouac
03:46can be as fierce as the competition rally itself.
03:49Dominant drivers within this category
03:51have been Vladimir Chajan with seven race wins
03:54closely followed by Karol Loprace with six wins.
03:59Lightweight cross-country vehicles.
04:02Previously run under the car category,
04:04lightweight cross-country vehicles
04:06are now run under their own class in the car competition.
04:09This category, which was introduced in 2017, is booming.
04:13The appeal of the lightweight cross-country vehicle
04:16is to allow numerous amateurs
04:17to participate in an affordable and fun category.
04:21This new class also enables big teams and constructors
04:24to detect up-and-coming talents.
04:27As for the cars,
04:28the category lightweight cross-country vehicles
04:30consists of two main groups or types of vehicle
04:32driven by a driver and navigator.
04:35The Challenger, which are lightweight prototype vehicles.
04:39The SSV, are lightweight series production vehicles.
04:42Despite the different and diverse categories
04:45through which participants can choose to compete,
04:48they are all bound by the same challenge
04:50of confronting the difficult
04:51and at times near-impossible terrain of the car.
04:55That, no matter the category,
04:57tests both man and machine to its ultimate limits.
05:00The
