Following the confirmation of the presence of the Chilean rider Ignacio Casale (winner take-all in Quads in the Rally Dakar 2014) on this Dakar Series event that will take place in Peru, another multiple winner of the most difficult rally raid in the world will grace the new edition of the Desafio Inca with his presence. The Spanish driver Nani Roma has officially confirmed that he will line up, together with the Mini team, in search of the big trophy. So, last year’s winner of the Rally Dakar in Cars will be there fight it out over the dunes of Peru, which make the Desafío Inca one of the most important and demanding tests in the world.
In one of the biggest years in his driving career after authoritatively winning the Rally Dakar 2014 in Cars after 10 years (he had already won the Bikes title in 2004), Nani Roma has set himself a new challenge within the Dakar Series in South America. The dunes of Peru, recognised worldwide for the tremendous demands they make on competitors and their machines, have been chosen by Roma to make his appearance in the tournament this season.
As Roma says, “It’s an attractive race because Peru, where I raced two years in the Dakar, is a country and type of terrain I really like. It’s an opportunity to take on the dunes again, those wonderful lands and deserts. Our objective is always to win. The important thing is to have a good race, compete well and try and achieve the objective. We’re here with the idea of lifting the trophy. It’s never easy to win a race like this one, but we’ll pull out all the stops.”
The Spanish driver will arrive in Peru with the Mini team confident of doing the job that will take him to the top of the podium. Roma knows the dunes of Ica because he crossed them when he took part in 2012 and 2013, when Peru was part of the Dakar Rally route and where he has the best memories of the fans’ enthusiasm. If he does win the event, it will be another victory in a Dakar Series tournament for Nani after his triumph in the Desafío Ruta 40 last year in Argentina.
“The Desafío Inca is key to our preparation for the next Dakar Rally because there are many dunes, a lot of sand, and it is hard to find races which only have dunes in them. So, I think that being able to drive on this terrain in difficult stages, in the open desert, is great training for us to test new things on the car. It’s really interesting for us to be there,” the Spanish driver adds.
With his presence, the Desafío Inca already offers strong, demanding competition between 11th and 14th September, in which the two 2014 Dakar Rally champions in Quads and Cars confirm the high level that will be seen in Ica. Nani Roma has officially said ‘yes’ to the invitation and will line up for the great Peruvian race. The Desafío Inca continues to attract great international-class competitors.
