Minneapolis – Xtreme Plus’ Willy Alcaraz made it an unprecedented fourth time he’d win the Dakar and the third time riding solo, this time in a RZR XP 1000.
This year’s Dakar Rally was 9,000 kilometers, spanning three countries with 140 competitors taking on some of the toughest geography offered in an off-road race. Alcaraz, similar to the bike riders, would run the race without a windshield and faced the heat, cold, rain, hail, salt, temperatures below zero, altitude and at the end of the race, a storm and mud. He would not only take his class but also finish in 46th place out of the 67 remaining cars in the car category.
“I am exhausted! This Dakar was hard until the very end, but I am happy to get the fourth victory in T3 and the third in solo,” said Alcaraz. “At the end, in spite of the bad weather, I was able to manage my distance and make it to the end. The Polaris RZR XP 1000 is a well-made machine that has been magnified by the preparation of one of the most professional workshops in Pont de Vaux. I want to thank Nico, Manu, Thierry, Francis, Sylvain, Alexis, you guys do an extraordinary work every night to make the RZR as new, and in a very friendly environment and good humor which makes me feel better when I get to the bivouac every evening. Also, I want to thank Marco Piana, Norberto Cangani and Steven Griener in the T4 truck (race truck), because we know that in case of a problem, they are not very far.”
Along with Alcaraz, Xtreme Plus’ Team Munk/Delaunay, also in a RZR XP 1000, would take second in the T3 category and 55th overall.
For a race recap, Dakar fans can check out Polaris’ new Dakar race page at http://www.polaris.com/es-al/rzr-side-by-side/dakar.
