New Delhi: Sanjay Takale has created history in Riyadh and became the first Indian racer to finish the prestigious Dakar Rally in the classic cars category. He showed outstanding consistency and skill throughout the challenging competition of nearly 8000 km, including 12 special stages of 5000 km. Takale finished the two-week course in the 10th position in his class along with French co-driver Maxime Raud.
The 56-year-old partnered with Compagnie Saharienne and drove a Toyota Land Cruiser HZJ78 in the Dakar Classic. He also became the first Indian to race in the Dakar Classic. The 47th edition of the Dakar was finished in Shubaytah and reached the final finish line after covering 7,453 km of the route. It was also the sixth edition of the rally in Saudi Arabia.
Takale finished a stunning fifth in the last stage with zero penalty points. His strong performances included an impressive P7 twice, in Stage 3 after the demanding 48-hour Chrono segment, and another seventh in Stage 7. He also chalked out three top-11 finishes in Stages 8, 9 and 11. After 14 challenging stages, Takale completed the rally 10th in his class for an overall 18th position.
Sanjay Takale becomes the first Indian driver to take part (and to finish!) the Dakar Rally with Maxime Raud at his side! Congratulations guys, you are entering in the history of the Dakar👏#FIA #Dakar pic.twitter.com/3yGHSiMLtb
— FIA (@fia) January 17, 2025
Sanjay Takale’s career
When the race started, the 56-year-old made headlines for getting the distinction of becoming the first-ever Indian to compete in the four-wheel section at the Dakar Classic. He began his career in motorsports in 1987.
He raced on two-wheelers until 2001 and then bid farewell to the segment after winning the bike National round that year. After that, he started participating in endurance rallies back in 2009 and became the first ever Indian to win the 2013 Asia Pacific Rally Championships. The other two Indian racers Harith Noah and Jatin Jain competing at the 2025 Dakar Rally failed to complete the race.
Sanjay Takale made history and became the first Indian to finish the Dakar Rally. He finished 18th overall in the four-wheel classic segment. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
