IN AN era of sanitised race tracks with eons of run-off, and processional racing, Dakar and the WRC are two bastions of a time when motorsport was dangerous, exciting, and fast.
In the WRC you have arguably the most skilled drivers in the world, pushing to the absolute limit with zero margin of error. One centimetre off-line could result in a heap of twisted metal wrapped around a tree. WRC cars are small, based on hatches like the Volkswagen Polo, and pack a serious punch from their 1.6-litre turbo engines.
Dakar is still the toughest race in the world, despite being moved from its traditional African home to South America. The gruelling race is conducted in searing heat, dangerously inhospitable terrain, and on a ruthlessly unforgiving schedule. Some nutters even take on the event in trucks. Yes, they are purpose built, 900hp towering monsters. But a 9-tonne truck isn’t exactly the best option for tackling a sea of sand dunes.
So when these two worlds collide, on the most fearsome stage of the WRC’s fastest rally no less, the action is awe-inspiring.
Props need to be given to Red Bull for bringing a VW Polo and Kamaz Dakar truck together on the famed Ouninpohja stage from Rally Finland.
Watch as the towering beast that is the Kamaz hunts down the diminutive Polo through the Finnish forest.
While the site of WRC cars flying through the air is nothing new, watching a 9-tonne truck soar with all four wheels off the deck is incredible.
In the clip, the pair launch themselves over the stages most famous jump (one of countless which line the stage) near an iconic yellow house. The record distance leap off this jump is 57-metres set by Markko Martin in 2003. Phwoar!
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