AL DUWADIMI - Team de Rooy FPT finally shook off the bad luck of the last few days with a glorious one-two on the seventh stage of the Dakar Rally. Aleš Loprais convincingly won the truck stage around Al Duwadimi on Sunday, Vaidotas Žala was second. Anja van Loon once again proved to be very consistent and raced her Iveco to a respectable eighth place.
Naturally, the mood in the de Rooy FPT team was euphoric after such a top result. “So, without bad luck, it mainly depends on the skill of the driver, the navigator and the mechanic, who takes care of the right tire pressure for the track. Then we have a winning combination. Today, we proved It”, said a satisfied team manager Henk van Leuven.
Tough test
“It was a tough test. A lot could have gone wrong. The dunes and the sandy track with stones were tough, and that meant a high risk of flat tires. But that didn’t happen. Loprais hit a tree. He broke a windshield and a side window and damaged a window frame. But overall, it was a perfect day. The trio of all three teams controlled the trucks perfectly.”
It was another confirmation for Team de Rooy FPT that they are in excellent shape. Van Leuven: “You see that chances can change. It seems that everyone gets their share of bad luck at the Dakar, or so it seems, but today, we were able to see once again that everything works well with us.”
“We also never had to conclude that it was due to reckless driving or that we weren’t properly prepared. Instatrade Loprais Team de Rooy FPT, Skuba Team de Rooy FPT and Fried van de Laar Racing Team de Rooy FPT are three professional teams that really know what they're doing, but sometimes they have to live with the circumstances. That's part of it.”
Second stage win
And so is winning. Loprais took his second stage win of the rally on Sunday. Before that, he won the third stage. On Sunday, he finished 23 minutes ahead of runner-up Mitchel van den Brink.
Van Leuven: “Aleš is still very down-to-earth. He is happy with the result but says, ‘tomorrow is another day’. And that is the right approach. There was a short euphoria of ‘we scored’. But that was only at the finish. In the bivouac everyone is very composed again. That’s the way it should be. They are all professionals with a professional attitude.”
If Team de Rooy FPT has its way, this should lead to even more victories. “The rally only has a few days left, but these days can affect the standings. So I told everyone: do what you did today again tomorrow.”
Source: Team de Rooy FPT
Photo: A.S.O./A.Vincent/DPPI
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