Rally Dakar

Our guys are a joke. They get a better car, improved logistics, and a fresh three-year sponsorship deal, yet they’re still trailing behind. Clearly, they need a better sense of direction.

Are you kidding me? It’s the same old story we see every single year—honestly, I can't say I'm surprised by this result at all.

The real kicker, though, is that after only about 400 kilometers of timed sections—keep in mind they only measure time for roughly a third of the stage—they're already trailing Sainz by five and a half hours.

Honestly, I’m just here for Jutt Kleinschmidt. In my humble opinion, she’s easily the greatest driver of the modern era.

I was hoping some of our guys would head out there just to soak up the atmosphere, and honestly, they’ve always been such class acts on the track in past races. They play by the rules, you know? It’s refreshing. Maybe this time the stars will finally align for them. Go Martinčević, go Frčko!

Honestly, I can't believe people can enjoy watching them with such enthusiasm. It’s blatant money laundering—pure and simple. A sponsor cuts them a check for $200,000, and then suddenly, $150,000 just... vanishes back into their pockets. They're nothing but thieves.

Honestly, I can already see Frčko standing up there again at some Fair Play award ceremony or whatever they call it. It’s predictable. They’ll probably find some crew out there with a blown tire or a busted gearbox, rush over to help their colleagues, and suddenly everyone’s acting like they're absolute heroes.
I mean, does it even matter who crosses the finish line first? Anyone who actually finishes a rally is a winner in my book. It’s easily the toughest race on the planet—a true adventure. Unfortunately, our guys don't have a world-class team backing them like the others do. They haven't had proper training, and let's be real, the car isn't exactly in peak condition. Compared to the international pros, we're basically just rookies... and no, I'm not being cynical, I'm just being realistic.

As for the amount of cash they scooped up for this trip, I’ll pass on commenting directly. I will say, though, it would be a whole lot smarter if that corporation took the money meant for sponsoring our failed little excursion to Africa and instead gave it to the employees who are actually facing layoffs...

Casey Rivera6 said:Would they be a joke? They’re a joke every single year, so this result was pretty much expected!

Not just a joke—it’s honestly pathetic. Last year they were at 72nd. Now they’re sitting at 163😕 out of 169. And let me remind you: they have a newer, better car, improved logistics, and a fresh three-year sponsorship deal, yet they drive like they're afraid to scratch the paint. Does anyone actually know Martinčević's background? Was he ever an actual driver, or just some guy selling smoke and mirrors?

It’s not about who crosses the line first; everyone who finishes a rally is a winner. This is arguably the toughest race on Earth—a true adventure. Unfortunately, our guys don't have a real team like the pros do, they haven't properly prepared, and the car isn't even in great shape compared to the international teams. We're basically amateurs... and no, I'm not being cynically stupid.

Stop playing the victim and looking for excuses for failure. That’s exactly why they look so miserable—they think just showing up is enough. They aren't the only amateurs out there, either. And calling them amateurs is a stretch since this is their third year at Rally Dakar; they have some experience under their belts. At the end of the day, *how* you finish matters immensely. You either fight for it or you just cruise. If you take the easy way out, you haven't earned your spot at Rally Dakar, and you shouldn't be burning through sponsors' money. Rally Dakar isn't a damn safari tour.

silentorca492, what on earth are you even talking about? 🤮
Honestly, have you been following the Rally Dakar for, what, one or two years now? 😕

If you actually want to see where the real enthusiasts follow the Rally Dakar—you should probably head over there instead.

silentorca492, what are you even talking about?
Are you new here, or have you just been watching Rally Dakar for a year or two?

My bad, I meant 134th out of 137.
Keep it up, guys. You've definitely got your sights set on the next few years.

Before the Rally Dakar started, Martinčević mentioned their goal was realistically to break into the top 10 of their category. He clearly has some reasoning behind that claim. I just hope he didn't mean finishing in the bottom 10. I can't shake the feeling that these guys might just be mediocre drivers with a real talent for marketing and squeezing money out of sponsors.

I think Martinčević runs some firm that handles the printing for Michelin’s American publications...

As far as the vehicles go, Toyota actually put them together—and they've got Toyota technicians on standby too (since, you know, they paid for the privilege). I suspect those mechanics might have even installed a speed limiter or something, so they probably can't push past 50 miles mph, otherwise they risk having the vehicle impounded by 🙂

Martinčević runs some company that handles printing for Michelin's American publications.

Was he ever a pro driver?

silentorca492 said:My bad—we're at 134 out of 137.
Keep it going, guys; you’ve certainly made quite the commitment for the coming years.

You never actually mentioned how long you've been following Rally Dakar, but honestly, it doesn't matter much—I'm stepping away from this thread 🙂 once it gets any further along... it's clear some things are just being missed here..

I’d say Miller is nothing more than a professional purveyor of smoke and mirrors!