Agen-d’Aveyron. Finally, an eighth Aveyron resident will be at the start!

Co-driver of Jean-Rémy Bergounhe on the last Dakar, Agentol Lionel Costes, who had chosen not to start in 2025 for personal and professional reasons, will finally be at the start on January 3 in Saudi Arabia. He will be alongside Ludovic Gherardi, a racing driver who won the French Cup in 2013, but also a motorcycle driver who participated in the Bol d'Or. “I had warned Jean-Rémy Bergounhe that I would not start this year. And even a proposal from Antoine Méo (multiple enduro world champion, converted to buggy in the last Dakar, Editor's note), didn't change my mind. And then I was contacted by the MD team for which I raced with Jean-Rémy on the last Dakar, who were looking for a co-driver for Ludovic Gherardi, whose unwell co-driver could not be present at the start. After some hesitation I said yes, no without having warned Jean-Rémy beforehand, because I couldn't let down the MD team and Ludo, who is also a friend.”explains the man who will therefore be teammate and competitor of Jean-Rémy Bergounhe, within the Optimus team.

“Not having to participate in the Dakar, I registered for the new Andros Trophy (a competition made up of five rounds which are all held in Andorra, Editor's note) with Franck Parolin(cycling champion and owner of cycle stores in Ruthénois) because in the Andros trophy, it is one car and two drivers “, specifies Costes, who is participating in the first round of the trophy in Andorra today, at the wheel of a Polaris buggy. And if he will be absent during the next two rounds due to Dakar, he will participate in the last two at his return.