Loeb ‘not obsessed’ with winning Dakar after multiple near-misses

Sebastien Loeb says he is ‘not obsessed’ with winning the Dakar Rally after coming close to clinching the top prize on several occasions.

One of the greatest rally drivers of all time with nine titles in the World Rally Championship, Loeb has found it hard to emulate the same success in the cross-country format.

The Frenchman finished runner-up in the Dakar on three occasions and set a new record of six consecutive stage wins in 2023, but an overall trophy has eluded him in eight visits with two different manufacturers (Peugeot and Prodrive/BRX).

Having joined Dacia for the 2025 season of the World Rally-Raid Championship, including its blue riband event in Saudi Arabia, the 50-year-old played down his pursuit of a maiden Dakar victory.

“It’s not an obsession. Today it is my objective,” he said. “But now I compete in cross-country and in the world championship, and the Dakar Rally is the most special of the year, so it is not an obsession, but it is my main objective for the season.”

Loeb will be driving the new Dacia Sandrider that he has developed with Prodrive in the 47th edition of Dakar from 3-17 January.

Qatari star Nasser Al-Attiyah and Loeb’s former Extreme E team-mate Cristina Gutierrez are also a part of the line-up.

The three-car Dacia team will be up against the new Ford/M-Sport operation as well as incumbents Toyota, Mini and Century in the Ultimate class, which features a total of 64 entrants.

To prepare for its entry into Dakar, Dacia undertook a rigorous testing programme in 2024, which included a competitive appearance in Rally Morocco in October.

Loeb said he is confident about his prospects for Dakar this year, stating that the motivation is high to finally achieve a long overdue victory in the marathon.

“It’s always difficult to say, of course the aim is to fight for the win, it always is,” he said.

“The team did a good job, and the first week will be difficult, but we have done a good job with the testing, good evolution of the car, the feeling is good, everything is on the right track, it’s complicated, it’s difficult to put it all together. The motivation is there this year.”