The days preceding the start of the Dakar are usually used by competitors to carry out a few shakedowns of their 4×4, just to see if everything is in order. This is the case for Dacias and Toyotas. However, this Wednesday, January 1, 2025 at the bivouac in Bisha (Saudi Arabia), the Mini JCW Rally 3.0l of Guerlain Chicherit and Alex Winocq remains under the tent of the X-Raid team. Even more surprising, the stickers and other sponsors have been erased and the car sports a carbon shell. Besides, the pilot is not there!
READ ALSO > Route, program, entrants… the complete guide to the Dakar 2025
Information received, Guerlain Chicherit will only arrive this Wednesday evening at the starting point of the Dakar 2025 (prologue Friday). A delay which triggered the rumor machine in radio bivouac. Some were already anticipating a resounding package for the one who finished 4th in the 2024 Dakar. In question, the putting into receivership of one of the real estate companies managed by Guerlain Chicherit in the Alps last October. The ex-freeride skier claims to have since found “ a partner to start again » according to comments collected by the newspaper Le Dauphiné Libéré between Christmas and New Year's Day.
An all-round entrepreneur, Guerlain Chicherit is a character who stands out in the very polite world of motorsport. The Savoyard is also on the move with his rally-raid teams. Each winter since his return to the Dakar in 2022, we find him aboard a different car: homemade buggy in 2022, rented Prodrive in 2023, Toyota in 2024, and therefore Mini in 2025.
A choice that the winner of the 2022 Morocco Rally explains by the change of engine on board the 4×4 Mini. “ To have a high-performance car, there wasn't much choice, and I didn't want to be one customer among many others at Toyota (Overdrive Racing. Ndlr). I knew that X-Raid was preparing a new version of the Mini with a gasoline engine, so I called Sven (Quant, boss. Editor’s note) to ask him to try it. And I understood that it was the better car after two jumps and two turns. The Mini's chassis is extraordinary, but it was difficult to realize this because the engine was not yet at the same level. »
The Rally of Morocco, contested in October (abandonment due to mechanical failure while he was aiming for the podium on the morning of the last stage) allowed Guerlain Chicherit to reassure himself. “In Morocco, even though we didn't know exactly where we were going, we put up some crazy times even though we didn't push our pace. So we leave motivated and confident, both in the crew and in the car. But it's quite a challenge to fight against official drivers when we don't have the same means. I will do everything I can, without making excuses. »
