F1 News: Carlos Sainz Shares Emotional Moment With Father After Dakar Win
Carlos Sainz Sr, the father of Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz Jr, secured his fourth Dakar Rally title by extending his lead over Sebastian Loeb. An emotional moment was captured in a video as the Formula 1 driver welcomed his father in Saudi Arabia after the Dakar victory.
Like how luck was on Sainz's side during the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix, where he took to victory after the Red Bulls struggled in a tight street race, Sainz Sr made it to the win after several rival cars faced mechanical problems. Even his teammate Mattias Ekstrom and Stephane Peterhansel, suffered technical challenges which ultimately paved the way for the 61-year-old to take the lead.
Thus, all that was left for Sainz Sr to do was to conclude the rally stage by pulling a lead of 1 hour and 20 minutes from Guillaume de Mevies of Toyota. Apart from a fourth victory for Sainz, the win also marks Audi's first victory in the Dakar Rally.
The emotional video shows both Audi drivers atop the Audi RS Q E-tron being escorted to the drop-off point where Sainz Jr awaited his father's arrival. The son then carried him and brought him down as the two hugged each other.
The experienced Spaniard previously secured victories in the Dakar Rally in 2010, 2018, and 2020. His recent triumph surpassed his record, making him the oldest winner in the history of the race.
Audi achieved history with the Audi RS Q E-tron, the first low-emission prototype to win the Dakar Rally with a 1-hour and 20-minute lead over 7,900 kilometers. Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist also completed the rally successfully for Audi.
In an official statement, here's what Gernot Döllner, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, said:
“Audi has once again set a milestone in motorsport. Winning the world’s toughest desert rally with an electrified drive is a visible ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ and points the way to our electric future.
"The Audi RS Q e-tron has electric all-wheel drive. The energy supply is ensured by a high-voltage battery and an energy converter that runs on residual fuel-based reFuel, thus saving 60 percent of CO2 emissions compared to conventional fuels."