The Volkswagen team that was victorious in the Dakar Rally was honoured in a manner befitting the occasion in Buenos Aires on Sunday.
Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz drove their Race Touareg, numbered 305, onto the finish ramp through a crowd that had lined up on both sides of the road. On the ramp, the South African-German duo was officially celebrated as the winners of the "Dakar” debut in Argentina and Chile. After 14 legs and a total of about 9,500 kilometres they finished with a lead of 8m59s ahead of their team-mates Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford, who thus gave Volkswagen a one-two victory. The automobile manufacturer from Wolfsburg made history, clinching the first diesel win in the car class in the world’s toughest rally that has been staged since 1979.
Sixth place in the field of 168 contenders who had started to the event in the car class was secured by the two Germans Dieter Depping/Timo Gottschalk in the third Race Touareg. Carlos Sainz/Michel Périn had retired due to an accident while leading the twelfth stage. After 500,000 thrilled spectators had sent the participants off to the legendary desert classic in the heart of the Argentine capital on 2 January, another huge turnout at the finish now gave the victorious teams an enthusiastic welcome in the same way hundreds of thousands had been cheering the total of 530 participants during the rally day by day.
Dr Horst Neumann: "Top team and the art of engineering at its best”
Dr Horst Neumann, Member of the Executive Board of the Volkswagen Group with responsibility for Human Resources, was one of the first to offer congratulations, in this case of the entire Volkswagen board. "Volkswagen is proud to be standing at the very top of the podium of the Dakar Rally today! Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz as the winners and Mark Miller and Ralph Pitchford as the runners-up have delivered a fantastic performance. Training and team spirit, a zest for achievement and full concentration have taken them to the pinnacle after months of preparation.”
"Behind them,” Neumann added, "is a top-calibre team to which we express our cordial congratulations and thanks as well. Its performance reflects the art of engineering at its best and – with the Race Touareg – has enabled the first ever victory of a diesel-powered vehicle in the world’s toughest rally. For many years, this team headed by Kris Nissen never let up and kept the faith in its success. Persistence and staying power pay off in the end”!
Kris Nissen: "The atmosphere in South America was overwhelming"
Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen has accompanied the Race Touareg project from day one and, as the individual responsible for it, has now clinched the biggest exploit with the diesel-powered prototype for Volkswagen in the brand’s more than 40-year history. "Winning the ‘Dakar’ is difficult,” he sums up the event. "There are many unknowns, predictions beforehand are impossible – particularly since we drove in South America for the first time, so it’s all the more rewarding that Volkswagen prevailed with a one-two victory.”
Kris Nissen draws a positive conclusion regarding the premiere of the Dakar Rally on a different continent. "The organiser, A.S.O., has successfully transferred the ‘Dakar’ to South America and immediately presented an accomplished, well organised event. The atmosphere during the two weeks was overwhelming. All teams were welcomed in a manner which confirmed better than anything else that the decision to go to South America had been the right one. The environment exuded the type of flair typically found in southern countries, while the conditions on the tracks were rough, and thus worthy of a ‘Dakar.’”
Kris Nissen: "Proud to be working with such a team"
Volkswagen made history at the 2009 Dakar Rally in a two-fold sense: The brand is the first automobile manufacturer to win the car class of the off-road classic with a diesel engine as well as being the winner of the "Dakar’s” debut event in South America.
As Volkswagen Motorsport Director, Kris Nissen is the man behind the fielding of the four Race Toaureg vehicles – and the one-two victory clinched by Giniel de Villiers/Dirk von Zitzewitz and Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford.
What were the three best moments of the Dakar Rally for you?
Kris Nissen: "The start was one of the outstanding moments of the ‘Dakar’ straight from the outset because you could feel a whole country joining in the celebration. The ‘Dakar’ is known the world over, and everyone in Argentina and Chile wanted to witness the event ‘live’. Another moment occurred four or five days later when we realised that our preparation was paying off and that the team and the car were functioning perfectly. The third good moment was when we learned that Carlos Sainz and Michel Périn’s accident did not result in any severe damage to their health. This is very important for anyone in a position of responsibility in as large a team as Volkswagen’s. And then there was a fourth special moment – the arrival at the finish. That was simply an incredibly good feeling.”
Volkswagen is the first manufacturer to win the "Dakar” with a diesel-powered vehicle. How do you assess this exploit?
"I believe that this is a historic victory. Winning the ‘Dakar’ is a very difficult task. There are too many unknowns and it’s impossible to make any predictions beforehand. Volkswagen has been successful in this multi-dimensional sport from the outset and, for example, clinched stage wins with the Race Touareg as early as at the first ‘Dakar’ in 2004. The first podium result soon followed, and it was further improved by a second-place finish. In 2007, we were strong but minor issues cost us victory. In 2009, we were able to prove that we’ve got the best package in the overall outcome as well. Compared with our rivals from Mitsubishi and X-raid-BMW, Volkswagen – with its TDI technology – successfully demonstrated its diesel expertise. This is a nice realisation.”
And what does the "Dakar” victory mean to you personally?
"It’s no doubt a special kind of relief to have delivered almost perfect teamwork in the world’s most difficult race. ‘One team, one goal’ – that was our motto for this ‘Dakar’ and we breathed life into this commitment. We worked toward this goal for a long time. Now, the emotions are gradually emerging, we’re slowly starting to realise what we’ve really achieved. Looking our boys into the eyes, you’ll see that some have tears in them, while others are simply happy – and nobody is unhappy, to be sure. I’m proud of having been given the opportunity to work with such a squad, with such a fantastic team.”
What are the most important pieces of the puzzle in the Volkswagen Motorsport organization that have contributed to the "Dakar” exploit?
"You can divide this into two major areas. For one, with a small, powerful TDI diesel engine and a highly advanced chassis, we created the technical potential which gave us the best package on each of the special stages. In this area, the Volkswagen Motorsport technical staff, as well as Technical Development in Wolfsburg, are key elements. For the other, we get on well as a team – we’ve built a team in which all members handle their own tasks but also help out their colleagues. Everyone accepts everyone else. And that makes for a very cohesive squad.”
The TDI technology of the Volkswagen Group has been successful wherever it was used – for example, with Audi at the 24-hour race at Le Mans or in the SEAT in the World Touring Car Championship. Now, Volkswagen has won the "Dakar” with this concept. What gives this technology such a leading edge?
"First of all, the Volkswagen Group had paved the way for this technology from the outset, recognising its potential and driving the development forwards, step by step. As a consequence, it was possible to use this diesel technology – in collaboration with motorsport engineers – to put together good packages in the various disciplines, be it in touring car, sportscar or offroad racing. I personally believe that Volkswagen Group’s TDI technology is more advanced than that of others. And of course the exploits achieved in motorsport benefit the production side of the house as well.”
Another remarkable aspect at the Dakar Rally was the cool, calm and collected manner in which the team tackled its tasks. How would you rate the share the team has had in this exploit?
"Anyone who’s ever tried buttoning a shirt or putting on a tie under stress knows that this seldom produces the desired success. So, you’ve got to start all over two or three times. That’s what happens in a team at the Dakar Rally as well: if everyone takes a reasonable amount of time to finish a job, then the job will be finished in one go. That’s not only better but also quicker. I think we’ve successfully implemented this principle in our team. We’ve improved the way we communicate processes and can therefore distribute the load to several shoulders if necessary. This makes the whole team stronger. At the ‘Dakar’ this was a key factor. Although the loads put on the cars were heavier than ever, we were finished servicing them earlier than our rivals were, every day. And, as a result, our squad was constantly better rested than the others.”
A bit of luck is also necessary in order to be successful. Is there anything that should not have happened during the "Dakar” under any circumstances?
"In terms of technical aspects we were prepared well enough to always know where we stood. The worst thing that could have happened to us would have been a very large gap in trailing our rivals at the beginning of the rally, considering our restrained way of driving. In that case, it would have been difficult to slow down our drivers and to convince them to continue our pace. But the opposite happened: After a few days our rivals realised how strong we were, which at times prompted them to drive faster than their capabilities permitted. Carlos Sainz and his co-driver Michel Périn were always able to counter such attempts without taking any undue risks. I think that drove some of our competitors into making mistakes.”
But with Sainz/Périn a Race Touareg retired after an accident as well. Could all four Volkswagen vehicles in the field be expected to reach the finish?
"At such a tough rally you can’t expect to start with four cars and take all of them to the finish. As expected, we hardly encountered any technical problems. You can never prevent losing a car. We’ve got to accept that Carlos and Michel were unlucky. They set the pace and, as a result, frequently had to open the stage afterwards. That’s always a risk. I’m happy that they came out of the accident without serious consequences. However, compared with our immediate rivals, considering that we only had one car retire from the event, we did an outstanding job.”
Watching you in the bivouac one could feel the tension. What has made this Dakar Rally such a nerve-racking experience?
"At a cross-country rally, and particularly at the ‘Dakar’, the special stages are always very long and there is little information available as to how things are going during the stages. Even if you tap all the communications channels – such as receiving intermediate times via satellite phones – there is still a lot of uncertainty. For those waiting in the bivouac that’s sometimes hard to bear and the tension consistently rises. But after just a few days we knew that we were competitive on gravel and in sand and that we’re even a bit better than our rivals on these huge dunes. And I knew that the team was working well and without making mistakes and that the drivers were fully focused. In the end, all this served to calm me down again quite a bit.”
Volkswagen duo de Villiers/von Zitzewitz - a congenial pairing
When two people understand and trust each other blindly, throughout many hours a day, across a period of more than two weeks – the chemistry between them simply must be right.
Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz are far more than just driver and co-driver to each other, but have been genuine friends for years. Having won the 2009 Dakar Rally will now weld them together for the rest of their lives. 36-year-old Giniel de Villiers from Stellenbosch in South Africa together with Dirk von Zitzewitz, who is four years older and hails from Karlshof in northern Germany, made history in the 280-hp diesel-powered Race Touareg not just in one but several respects: De Villiers/von Zitzewitz have given Volkswagen the first victory of a diesel-powered car in the 30-year history of the legendary "Dakar”, and they are the winners of the maiden event of this unique cross-country rally on the South American continent. By the way, Giniel de Villiers is the first African to win the desert classic that used to be staged in Africa.
"As a co-driver, you need to really trust the skills of your driver in order to be able to fully concentrate on navigating without being able to see the terrain all the time,” says Dirk von Zitzewitz. "Because of the many shocks inside the car you’ve got to constantly keep your body taut – but this can easily cause you to tense up if you don’t have complete faith in the driver’s abilities. This is exactly our distinguishing trait, though – the fact that we respect and highly value each other’s performance.” The result of this rapport is calm, focused communication during the up to eight hours of strenuous driving across gravel, scree, dunes and camel grass.
"When something goes wrong we don’t shout at each other but immediately – and calmly – look for a way out of the particular predicament,” says Giniel de Villiers. "This should not be taken for granted. And it’s the same way we deal with each other outside the cockpit as well. We can have oodles of fun together. We simply get on great with each other. During two weeks as intensive as those of the ‘Dakar’, when you’re spending many hours together in the car, that’s really worth a lot.”
Navigational flash of inspiration: preliminary "Dakar” decision on twelfth leg
The twelfth stage of the 2009 Dakar Rally showed how unusual the solutions de Villiers/von Zitzewitz come up with can be and how successful they are. When they got into an almost insurmountable field of scree, Dirk von Zitzewitz simply jumped out of the car and pointed the way to Giniel de Villiers. "I’ve never had an experience quite like this one before. I’ve never had to get out of the car to find the way,” the northern German says with a smile. "In the end – despite our low speed – this saved us a lot of time.”
On the same leg a navigational flash of inspiration on the last five kilometres of the special stage gave the South African-German duo the crucial advantage over Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford, their team colleagues in the Volkswagen that was leading the event at the time. "We’d been leading the rally on a previous occasion and then dropped to third place,” recalls Giniel de Villiers, who goes by the name of "Ginny” while Dirk von Zitzewitz’ nickname within the team is "Schnietzel”. "Then the twelfth leg came – an incredibly rough day for us. But about five kilometres before the finish Dirk recovered a lot of time for us by being the quickest to find the way out of the special stage while others were still looking for it.” Just one waypoint before, they had still been running about two minutes behind Miller/Pitchford, at the finish they were over 16 minutes in front. This was the preliminary decision.
Volkswagen’s one-two victory with de Villiers/von Zitzewitz and Miller/Pitchford
De Villiers/von Zitzewitz achieved four of the 13 possible stage wins and after 9,000 kilometres were 8m59s ahead of their team-mates Miller/Pitchford. Hence Volkswagen, the "Dakar” winner back in 1980 with Kottulinsky/Löffelmann in the Iltis, not only celebrated the historic first diesel-powered triumph but a one-two victory at that – with a total of ten stage wins. "Of course we’re proud of having been able to give Volkswagen this exploit,” unanimously says the winning duo. "And we’re grateful for being able to drive in such a strong team and such a reliable and fast car. Everything was simply perfect.”
Nevertheless, the road towards victory included setbacks as well. "When I announced the wrong way for a change on the tenth leg and this caused us to lose about 20 minutes of time, things were pretty quiet in the cockpit for the rest of the day,” says von Zitzewitz. "It’s not that we were blaming each other for this mishap – it’s just that we were simply frustrated for the remaining distance. These things don’t harm our friendship. We can never be angry with each other for a long time anyhow.”
Two multi-talented people share a cross-country rally cockpit on the second try
Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz, who spend up to 150 days together per year, joined cross-country rally racing after having started in other disciplines. While the South African had five touring car titles to his credit at home before seeking a new challenge in off-road racing, the northern German switched to cars from motorcycles. As a 15-time German Enduro champion, von Zitzewitz contested his first "Dakar” on a motorcycle, switched to a co-driver’s cockpit in 2002 alongside Mark Miller, by the way, and in 2005 formed a team at Volkswagen with Robby Gordon – the three drivers who clinched top places in the 2009 "Dakar” as well.
"When I was sitting in the car with Giniel for the first time – that was during a test in 2005 – I immediately felt that we’d be a good match. My choice would have been to team up with him straight away but Volkswagen had selected Tina Thörner for him at the time. They already knew each other, so that seemed to be a logical choice. And, after all, they clinched second place in the 2006 ‘Dakar’ together.”
"We’ve got common goals for which we fight tooth and nail”
When the duo was finally united in 2006, this sparked the beginning of a successful partnership. During their first joint competition, the 2006 Tunisia Rally, they immediately clinched sixth place. Six further podium places followed. "We’ve got common goals for which we’re able to fight tooth and nail together as well,” says Giniel de Villiers. "But the good thing about it is that outside the cockpit we both have the ability not to take ourselves too seriously. This is what really makes me feel very comfortable about our teamwork.”
While de Villiers enjoys circuit racing as well and, together with Carlos Sainz, Hans-Joachim Stuck and Dieter Depping, finished the maiden race of the new Scirocco as the runner-up of Volkswagen’s one-two victory at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring, Dirk von Zitzewitz cuts a good figure behind the steering wheel too. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, such as for so-called taxi rides for sponsors, von Zitzewitz really enjoys piloting the Race Touareg himself. "That’s huge fun for me,” says von Zitzewitz, who organises motorcycle training sessions and desert tours in his free time and certainly dreams of contesting the "Dakar” as a driver some day. No matter what these two may be involved in, they both work with maximum professionalism and dedication, but also have a good sense of humour. Their constant smiles are contagious and make them likable exponents of the Volkswagen team as well as of their
Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz drove their Race Touareg, numbered 305, onto the finish ramp through a crowd that had lined up on both sides of the road. On the ramp, the South African-German duo was officially celebrated as the winners of the "Dakar” debut in Argentina and Chile. After 14 legs and a total of about 9,500 kilometres they finished with a lead of 8m59s ahead of their team-mates Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford, who thus gave Volkswagen a one-two victory. The automobile manufacturer from Wolfsburg made history, clinching the first diesel win in the car class in the world’s toughest rally that has been staged since 1979.
Sixth place in the field of 168 contenders who had started to the event in the car class was secured by the two Germans Dieter Depping/Timo Gottschalk in the third Race Touareg. Carlos Sainz/Michel Périn had retired due to an accident while leading the twelfth stage. After 500,000 thrilled spectators had sent the participants off to the legendary desert classic in the heart of the Argentine capital on 2 January, another huge turnout at the finish now gave the victorious teams an enthusiastic welcome in the same way hundreds of thousands had been cheering the total of 530 participants during the rally day by day.
Dr Horst Neumann: "Top team and the art of engineering at its best”
Dr Horst Neumann, Member of the Executive Board of the Volkswagen Group with responsibility for Human Resources, was one of the first to offer congratulations, in this case of the entire Volkswagen board. "Volkswagen is proud to be standing at the very top of the podium of the Dakar Rally today! Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz as the winners and Mark Miller and Ralph Pitchford as the runners-up have delivered a fantastic performance. Training and team spirit, a zest for achievement and full concentration have taken them to the pinnacle after months of preparation.”
"Behind them,” Neumann added, "is a top-calibre team to which we express our cordial congratulations and thanks as well. Its performance reflects the art of engineering at its best and – with the Race Touareg – has enabled the first ever victory of a diesel-powered vehicle in the world’s toughest rally. For many years, this team headed by Kris Nissen never let up and kept the faith in its success. Persistence and staying power pay off in the end”!
Kris Nissen: "The atmosphere in South America was overwhelming"
Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen has accompanied the Race Touareg project from day one and, as the individual responsible for it, has now clinched the biggest exploit with the diesel-powered prototype for Volkswagen in the brand’s more than 40-year history. "Winning the ‘Dakar’ is difficult,” he sums up the event. "There are many unknowns, predictions beforehand are impossible – particularly since we drove in South America for the first time, so it’s all the more rewarding that Volkswagen prevailed with a one-two victory.”
Kris Nissen draws a positive conclusion regarding the premiere of the Dakar Rally on a different continent. "The organiser, A.S.O., has successfully transferred the ‘Dakar’ to South America and immediately presented an accomplished, well organised event. The atmosphere during the two weeks was overwhelming. All teams were welcomed in a manner which confirmed better than anything else that the decision to go to South America had been the right one. The environment exuded the type of flair typically found in southern countries, while the conditions on the tracks were rough, and thus worthy of a ‘Dakar.’”
Kris Nissen: "Proud to be working with such a team"
Volkswagen made history at the 2009 Dakar Rally in a two-fold sense: The brand is the first automobile manufacturer to win the car class of the off-road classic with a diesel engine as well as being the winner of the "Dakar’s” debut event in South America.
As Volkswagen Motorsport Director, Kris Nissen is the man behind the fielding of the four Race Toaureg vehicles – and the one-two victory clinched by Giniel de Villiers/Dirk von Zitzewitz and Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford.
What were the three best moments of the Dakar Rally for you?
Kris Nissen: "The start was one of the outstanding moments of the ‘Dakar’ straight from the outset because you could feel a whole country joining in the celebration. The ‘Dakar’ is known the world over, and everyone in Argentina and Chile wanted to witness the event ‘live’. Another moment occurred four or five days later when we realised that our preparation was paying off and that the team and the car were functioning perfectly. The third good moment was when we learned that Carlos Sainz and Michel Périn’s accident did not result in any severe damage to their health. This is very important for anyone in a position of responsibility in as large a team as Volkswagen’s. And then there was a fourth special moment – the arrival at the finish. That was simply an incredibly good feeling.”
Volkswagen is the first manufacturer to win the "Dakar” with a diesel-powered vehicle. How do you assess this exploit?
"I believe that this is a historic victory. Winning the ‘Dakar’ is a very difficult task. There are too many unknowns and it’s impossible to make any predictions beforehand. Volkswagen has been successful in this multi-dimensional sport from the outset and, for example, clinched stage wins with the Race Touareg as early as at the first ‘Dakar’ in 2004. The first podium result soon followed, and it was further improved by a second-place finish. In 2007, we were strong but minor issues cost us victory. In 2009, we were able to prove that we’ve got the best package in the overall outcome as well. Compared with our rivals from Mitsubishi and X-raid-BMW, Volkswagen – with its TDI technology – successfully demonstrated its diesel expertise. This is a nice realisation.”
And what does the "Dakar” victory mean to you personally?
"It’s no doubt a special kind of relief to have delivered almost perfect teamwork in the world’s most difficult race. ‘One team, one goal’ – that was our motto for this ‘Dakar’ and we breathed life into this commitment. We worked toward this goal for a long time. Now, the emotions are gradually emerging, we’re slowly starting to realise what we’ve really achieved. Looking our boys into the eyes, you’ll see that some have tears in them, while others are simply happy – and nobody is unhappy, to be sure. I’m proud of having been given the opportunity to work with such a squad, with such a fantastic team.”
What are the most important pieces of the puzzle in the Volkswagen Motorsport organization that have contributed to the "Dakar” exploit?
"You can divide this into two major areas. For one, with a small, powerful TDI diesel engine and a highly advanced chassis, we created the technical potential which gave us the best package on each of the special stages. In this area, the Volkswagen Motorsport technical staff, as well as Technical Development in Wolfsburg, are key elements. For the other, we get on well as a team – we’ve built a team in which all members handle their own tasks but also help out their colleagues. Everyone accepts everyone else. And that makes for a very cohesive squad.”
The TDI technology of the Volkswagen Group has been successful wherever it was used – for example, with Audi at the 24-hour race at Le Mans or in the SEAT in the World Touring Car Championship. Now, Volkswagen has won the "Dakar” with this concept. What gives this technology such a leading edge?
"First of all, the Volkswagen Group had paved the way for this technology from the outset, recognising its potential and driving the development forwards, step by step. As a consequence, it was possible to use this diesel technology – in collaboration with motorsport engineers – to put together good packages in the various disciplines, be it in touring car, sportscar or offroad racing. I personally believe that Volkswagen Group’s TDI technology is more advanced than that of others. And of course the exploits achieved in motorsport benefit the production side of the house as well.”
Another remarkable aspect at the Dakar Rally was the cool, calm and collected manner in which the team tackled its tasks. How would you rate the share the team has had in this exploit?
"Anyone who’s ever tried buttoning a shirt or putting on a tie under stress knows that this seldom produces the desired success. So, you’ve got to start all over two or three times. That’s what happens in a team at the Dakar Rally as well: if everyone takes a reasonable amount of time to finish a job, then the job will be finished in one go. That’s not only better but also quicker. I think we’ve successfully implemented this principle in our team. We’ve improved the way we communicate processes and can therefore distribute the load to several shoulders if necessary. This makes the whole team stronger. At the ‘Dakar’ this was a key factor. Although the loads put on the cars were heavier than ever, we were finished servicing them earlier than our rivals were, every day. And, as a result, our squad was constantly better rested than the others.”
A bit of luck is also necessary in order to be successful. Is there anything that should not have happened during the "Dakar” under any circumstances?
"In terms of technical aspects we were prepared well enough to always know where we stood. The worst thing that could have happened to us would have been a very large gap in trailing our rivals at the beginning of the rally, considering our restrained way of driving. In that case, it would have been difficult to slow down our drivers and to convince them to continue our pace. But the opposite happened: After a few days our rivals realised how strong we were, which at times prompted them to drive faster than their capabilities permitted. Carlos Sainz and his co-driver Michel Périn were always able to counter such attempts without taking any undue risks. I think that drove some of our competitors into making mistakes.”
But with Sainz/Périn a Race Touareg retired after an accident as well. Could all four Volkswagen vehicles in the field be expected to reach the finish?
"At such a tough rally you can’t expect to start with four cars and take all of them to the finish. As expected, we hardly encountered any technical problems. You can never prevent losing a car. We’ve got to accept that Carlos and Michel were unlucky. They set the pace and, as a result, frequently had to open the stage afterwards. That’s always a risk. I’m happy that they came out of the accident without serious consequences. However, compared with our immediate rivals, considering that we only had one car retire from the event, we did an outstanding job.”
Watching you in the bivouac one could feel the tension. What has made this Dakar Rally such a nerve-racking experience?
"At a cross-country rally, and particularly at the ‘Dakar’, the special stages are always very long and there is little information available as to how things are going during the stages. Even if you tap all the communications channels – such as receiving intermediate times via satellite phones – there is still a lot of uncertainty. For those waiting in the bivouac that’s sometimes hard to bear and the tension consistently rises. But after just a few days we knew that we were competitive on gravel and in sand and that we’re even a bit better than our rivals on these huge dunes. And I knew that the team was working well and without making mistakes and that the drivers were fully focused. In the end, all this served to calm me down again quite a bit.”
Volkswagen duo de Villiers/von Zitzewitz - a congenial pairing
When two people understand and trust each other blindly, throughout many hours a day, across a period of more than two weeks – the chemistry between them simply must be right.
Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz are far more than just driver and co-driver to each other, but have been genuine friends for years. Having won the 2009 Dakar Rally will now weld them together for the rest of their lives. 36-year-old Giniel de Villiers from Stellenbosch in South Africa together with Dirk von Zitzewitz, who is four years older and hails from Karlshof in northern Germany, made history in the 280-hp diesel-powered Race Touareg not just in one but several respects: De Villiers/von Zitzewitz have given Volkswagen the first victory of a diesel-powered car in the 30-year history of the legendary "Dakar”, and they are the winners of the maiden event of this unique cross-country rally on the South American continent. By the way, Giniel de Villiers is the first African to win the desert classic that used to be staged in Africa.
"As a co-driver, you need to really trust the skills of your driver in order to be able to fully concentrate on navigating without being able to see the terrain all the time,” says Dirk von Zitzewitz. "Because of the many shocks inside the car you’ve got to constantly keep your body taut – but this can easily cause you to tense up if you don’t have complete faith in the driver’s abilities. This is exactly our distinguishing trait, though – the fact that we respect and highly value each other’s performance.” The result of this rapport is calm, focused communication during the up to eight hours of strenuous driving across gravel, scree, dunes and camel grass.
"When something goes wrong we don’t shout at each other but immediately – and calmly – look for a way out of the particular predicament,” says Giniel de Villiers. "This should not be taken for granted. And it’s the same way we deal with each other outside the cockpit as well. We can have oodles of fun together. We simply get on great with each other. During two weeks as intensive as those of the ‘Dakar’, when you’re spending many hours together in the car, that’s really worth a lot.”
Navigational flash of inspiration: preliminary "Dakar” decision on twelfth leg
The twelfth stage of the 2009 Dakar Rally showed how unusual the solutions de Villiers/von Zitzewitz come up with can be and how successful they are. When they got into an almost insurmountable field of scree, Dirk von Zitzewitz simply jumped out of the car and pointed the way to Giniel de Villiers. "I’ve never had an experience quite like this one before. I’ve never had to get out of the car to find the way,” the northern German says with a smile. "In the end – despite our low speed – this saved us a lot of time.”
On the same leg a navigational flash of inspiration on the last five kilometres of the special stage gave the South African-German duo the crucial advantage over Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford, their team colleagues in the Volkswagen that was leading the event at the time. "We’d been leading the rally on a previous occasion and then dropped to third place,” recalls Giniel de Villiers, who goes by the name of "Ginny” while Dirk von Zitzewitz’ nickname within the team is "Schnietzel”. "Then the twelfth leg came – an incredibly rough day for us. But about five kilometres before the finish Dirk recovered a lot of time for us by being the quickest to find the way out of the special stage while others were still looking for it.” Just one waypoint before, they had still been running about two minutes behind Miller/Pitchford, at the finish they were over 16 minutes in front. This was the preliminary decision.
Volkswagen’s one-two victory with de Villiers/von Zitzewitz and Miller/Pitchford
De Villiers/von Zitzewitz achieved four of the 13 possible stage wins and after 9,000 kilometres were 8m59s ahead of their team-mates Miller/Pitchford. Hence Volkswagen, the "Dakar” winner back in 1980 with Kottulinsky/Löffelmann in the Iltis, not only celebrated the historic first diesel-powered triumph but a one-two victory at that – with a total of ten stage wins. "Of course we’re proud of having been able to give Volkswagen this exploit,” unanimously says the winning duo. "And we’re grateful for being able to drive in such a strong team and such a reliable and fast car. Everything was simply perfect.”
Nevertheless, the road towards victory included setbacks as well. "When I announced the wrong way for a change on the tenth leg and this caused us to lose about 20 minutes of time, things were pretty quiet in the cockpit for the rest of the day,” says von Zitzewitz. "It’s not that we were blaming each other for this mishap – it’s just that we were simply frustrated for the remaining distance. These things don’t harm our friendship. We can never be angry with each other for a long time anyhow.”
Two multi-talented people share a cross-country rally cockpit on the second try
Giniel de Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz, who spend up to 150 days together per year, joined cross-country rally racing after having started in other disciplines. While the South African had five touring car titles to his credit at home before seeking a new challenge in off-road racing, the northern German switched to cars from motorcycles. As a 15-time German Enduro champion, von Zitzewitz contested his first "Dakar” on a motorcycle, switched to a co-driver’s cockpit in 2002 alongside Mark Miller, by the way, and in 2005 formed a team at Volkswagen with Robby Gordon – the three drivers who clinched top places in the 2009 "Dakar” as well.
"When I was sitting in the car with Giniel for the first time – that was during a test in 2005 – I immediately felt that we’d be a good match. My choice would have been to team up with him straight away but Volkswagen had selected Tina Thörner for him at the time. They already knew each other, so that seemed to be a logical choice. And, after all, they clinched second place in the 2006 ‘Dakar’ together.”
"We’ve got common goals for which we fight tooth and nail”
When the duo was finally united in 2006, this sparked the beginning of a successful partnership. During their first joint competition, the 2006 Tunisia Rally, they immediately clinched sixth place. Six further podium places followed. "We’ve got common goals for which we’re able to fight tooth and nail together as well,” says Giniel de Villiers. "But the good thing about it is that outside the cockpit we both have the ability not to take ourselves too seriously. This is what really makes me feel very comfortable about our teamwork.”
While de Villiers enjoys circuit racing as well and, together with Carlos Sainz, Hans-Joachim Stuck and Dieter Depping, finished the maiden race of the new Scirocco as the runner-up of Volkswagen’s one-two victory at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring, Dirk von Zitzewitz cuts a good figure behind the steering wheel too. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, such as for so-called taxi rides for sponsors, von Zitzewitz really enjoys piloting the Race Touareg himself. "That’s huge fun for me,” says von Zitzewitz, who organises motorcycle training sessions and desert tours in his free time and certainly dreams of contesting the "Dakar” as a driver some day. No matter what these two may be involved in, they both work with maximum professionalism and dedication, but also have a good sense of humour. Their constant smiles are contagious and make them likable exponents of the Volkswagen team as well as of their
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