Filed under: Motorsport
Well, as predicted the X-raid MINI All4 team won the Dakar rally on Sunday.
After 14 hard stages Frenchmen Stéphane Peterhansel, his co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret and their green MINI All4 Racing were confirmed as the winner of the legendary Rally Dakar in a time of 38h 54m 46s.
This win was Peterhansel's tenth at the "Dakar", six on a motorcycle and now four wins in the car category.
Celebrating the win, Dr Kay Segler, Senior Vice President, MINI Brand Management and Business Coordination, said: "On behalf of MINI, I would like to congratulate Stéphane Peterhansel, his co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret and the entire X-raid team on their triumph at the 2012 Rally Dakar.
"To stand on the top step of the podium on ten occasions after the toughest rally in the world is quite simply an unbelievable achievement."
Despite the congratulations from MINI, the All4 car actually shares very little with the production Countryman. Still, the tubular-framed off-roader was at least sculpted by the MINI design team and powered by a BMW Motorsport-supplied diesel engine.
See how the MINI All4 was made in the video below: