While avoiding to compare the two feelings – being WRC champion and winning the tough Dakar competition – Sainz did reveal that his impressive run in South America over the course of the last 2 weeks has made him more proud of himself than ever.
In an interview conducted by the Volkswagen press office, Sainz admitted to his incredible feelings after winning the Dakar Rally ahead of teammate Nasser Al-Attiyah.
“The Dakar Rally is a great race of enormous importance in the sporting world. To have won this makes me extremely proud, particularly as I won it my way, and according to my understanding of this sport,” said Sainz, who needed no less than 5 years of training in cross-country rallying and previous Dakar participations before taming the race in South America.
Sainz admitted that he learned plenty of stuff about competing in the Dakar event year after year, especially since he was coming from within a discipline (the WRC) that required giving it your all for a short amount of time. As compared to the world rallying, cross-country events require a lot of patience, something that the Spaniard tried to impose to himself year after year. Eventually, it paid off in 2010.
“When I switched to this discipline I had to work at staying patient. This is one of the big differences to sprint rallies. Throughout the entire rally, during the stages, even in the bivouac - you have to stay patient all the time. Particularly during the ‘Dakar' it's just not possible to ride your luck, the sport is way too complex for this. I think I've understood more and more each year,” added Sainz.
As for future goals, the Spaniard jokingly suggested that he may not be that old for Formula One after all.
“I will certainly be getting together with Kris Nissen (Volkswagen Motorsport Director) soon. (laughs) Perhaps Volkswagen will move into Formula 1 – that would be just at the right time for me...” ended Sainz.
Google News