At full strength to Rallye du Maroc
The beckoning Moroccan gravel paths, stone paths, plains and sand dunes await the three Iveco Powerstars of Team De Rooy.
october 9, 2023
Corné van Drunen and his team of mechanics have done a lot of work in the Dakar warehouse in Son.
This way, Janus van Kasteren, Michiel Becx and Anja Van Loon can compete in Rallye du Maroc with maximum prepared rally trucks. This rally will be the final test in the run-up to Dakar 2024.
With a strong field of participants and Dakar-worthy stages, it is the ideal rally to connect the dots.
“Boss Machinery Team De Rooy FPT”
✋🏼 Competing for the ‘T5 World Truck Championship 2023 ‘ 🤚🏼
Van Kasteren will start under the name Boss Machinery Team De Rooy FPT with mechanic Darek Rodewald and navigator Marcel Snijders.
As the winner of the last Dakar rally, the man from Veldhoven starts as favourite. Moreover, the FIA Cross-Country World Championship can be won, so there is a real title at stake for the experienced trio in the truck with starting number 500.
“Becx Competition Team De Rooy FPT”
The team of Becx Competition Team De Rooy FPT will bring along driver Michiel Becx, Wuf van Ginkel as mechanic and Edwin Kuijpers as navigator.
Becx’s goal is to gain experience with the torpedo rally truck and to finish as close as possible behind Janus van Kasteren. After previous experience as a quick assistance in a truck with a front control cabin, Becx is looking forward to driving the Powerstar with starting number 506.
“Ladies Team De Rooy FPT”
Anja van Loon will be the eye-catcher of Ladies Team De Rooy FPT. Marije van Ettekoven joins as a mechanic and Floor Maten as navigator. Apart from the novelty of a first Dutch truck team consisting entirely of women, these ladies should be able to compete at the top of the rankings.
However, the rally will mainly be used to ensure that the three of us get to know each other well. Van Loon showed she has racing blood in the Morocco Desert Challenge and will continue to write history in the truck with starting number 507.
Rallye du Maroc will start on Friday, October 13 in Agadir with a prologue.
Rally & route
The next day, the caravan travels to Zagora via a stage of no less than 721 kilometers (of which 324 kilometers are a special stage). Stage 2 (288 kilometers special stage) and 3 (336 kilometers special stage) will start and finish there. Stage 4 (351 kilometers special stage) leads from Zagora to Merzouga. The final takes place in and around the famous dunes of Merzouga. The fifth stage has 152 kilometers of special stage.
Video
The impressive caravan with rally and service trucks from Team De Rooy already left for Morocco last week. Before the competition, the organization offers the opportunity to test for two days.
Photos
All in all, plenty of opportunities to test the trucks and measure themselves in competition conditions with competitors such as Gert Huzink and the Czech Martin Macik.
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