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January 19, 2005BFGoodrich Tires Wins Fourth Straight Dakar Rally; World's Toughest Off-Road Tires Prove Themselves During Grueling Race Greenville, SC BFGoodrich Tires scored its fourth straight victory and sixth out of the last seven Dakar Rally races. Driving a Mitsubishi Pajero outfitted with BFGoodrich Baja T/A® Rock tires, Stéphane Peterhansel recorded his second straight victory and the fourth win in a row for the world's most successful off-road racing tire manufacturer. Peterhansel completed the punishing race in 52 hours, 31 minutes, 39 seconds and was followed by two other teams riding on BFGoodrich Tires. France's Luc Alphand, a former champion snow skier, finished second twenty seven minutes,14 seconds behind Peterhansel. Germany's Jutta Kleinschmidt finished third, three hours, 22 minutes behind Peterhansel. The Dakar Rally is one of the most challenging and respected off-road events in the world and this year's rally was voted one of the most difficult in its 27 year history. 
"Winning the Dakar Rally once is an achievement. Winning it six out of seven years is incredible," said Thom Peebles, BFGoodrich Tires brand director. "Building the World's Toughest Off-Road Tires means proving them on the World's Toughest Terrain. The Dakar Rally is one of the toughest off-road races in the world and running on one type of tire proves the strength and quality of BFGoodrich tires."
"This year, tires and tire management played an even more important role in deciding the winner," said Todd Steen, motorsports marketing manager for BFGoodrich Tires. "The factory teams went with one tire type and organizers also eliminated tire pressure systems and tire drop offs. Teams using BFGoodrich Tires once again outperformed the competition taking the top 10 spots in the Car class." A single tire type for factory teams This year's factory teams had to race on one type of tire (BFGoodrich Baja T/A Rock size: 235/85R16) during the entire rally as opposed to multiple types previously designed for specific terrain. The rule modification was the result of the three officially-entered manufacturers – Mitsubishi, Nissan and Volkswagen – deciding to use just one type of tire for the entire competition instead of the two traditional types used in the past, one for rocky, hard-wearing surfaces and the other designed for sand. The change was aimed at achieving cost savings and facilitating logistics. In addition to the three official manufacturers, BMW also selected BFGoodrich Tires as its tire of choice. 
With the win, Mitsubishi clinched their 10th Dakar title with their fifth consecutive victory — a new Dakar record. With his win, Peterhansel added a second title in the Car class to add to his six overall victories in the Bike class. Peterhansel and teammate Luc Alphand clinched a one-two Dakar finish for Mitsubishi.
Quoting The Champion "This second victory is a confirmation of my new status as a car driver," Peterhansel said after climbing out of the car and covered in dust. "I was very nervous on the final morning. The stage was short, but it wasn't easy. This is a great victory for me. The race was tougher than last year and the margin of victory was slimmer than 2004." "It's a big satisfaction, but also a great relief. Every day was difficult and we improved regularly. I stayed focused until the end. I have to thank my co-driver who didn't do one mistake. Because even with a good driver, the car cannot win if the navigation isn't at the height of expectations. Now that I've figured out how to win consecutive wins, I will come back next year to try and beat the record. We will work all year to try and be as good." 
Building On Its Off-Road Racing Legacy
With its victory, BFGoodrich Tires clinched another victory in the world's toughest rally. BFGoodrich Tires is no stranger to off-road racing success. Most recently winning its 19th straight overall championship in the SCORE Baja 1000, the brand has developed its off-road motorsports program to include everything from rally and desert racing to the fastest growing form of off-road motorsports, rock crawling. BFGoodrich Tires continues to be the preferred choice of many non-official teams. As in the past, teams were authorized to choose their tires for each leg according to the predominant type of terrain. BFGoodrich Tires combines technical expertise with vast motorsports experience, delivering a high-performance tire for every type of vehicle from ultra-high performance tuner vehicles, sports cars and SUVs to the hottest sport trucks, pickups and rock-crawling rigs in the world. For more than 30 years, BFGoodrich Tires has used motorsports as a proving ground. Success on the street begins with winning on the track and BFGoodrich Tires is involved in every type of racing, including oval, road, drag, desert and extreme rock-crawling. With 19 consecutive Baja 1000 wins, the most wins in rock-crawling history, and an unmatched record on pavement, BFGoodrich Tires has proven the only records it breaks are its own. |
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