The figures tell their own tale: seven leg wins in the seven-leg event, overall win and two podium finishes. What was the formula for this triumph ?
« To succeed in cross-country rallying, it takes much more than just pure engine power, technology-wise. Just as it is the case in the most motor-racing categories, it's about driveability, weight distribution and set-up. In addition, you have to cope with the most different conditions and terrain situations. When it comes to the reliability and mileage of individual components, for instance, it takes many years of experience – and our toughest competitors have got more than 20 years of this experience under their belts. »

The team was subjected to minor structural changes. On the technical side, it was joined by Andreas Lautner – and Andreas Hainke was signed as Team Manager. How did the ‘newbies' blend in ?
« Correct. Andreas Lautner joined Volkswagen Motorsport this year, as Technical Director responsible for every chassis used in both our cross-country rallying and road-racing programmes. And this also applies for the new Scirocco for the Nürburgring 24-Hour Race. Andreas Lautner can rely on the experience of our Dakar project's Manager Technology, Eduard Weidl, who couldn't attend this rally due to an injury. Both Andreas Lautner and Andreas Hainke succeeded in blending in perfectly and like everybody in the team, they also made their contributions to our win. »

Why is it that the success in the Central Europe Rally is particularly significant ?
« In the past years, the organisers, A.S.O., made for a major media interest in the ‘Dakar', such as the TV coverage in 189 countries. And their new event, the Central Europe Rally, also was covered in 160 countries. When it comes to the future, I am confident that A.S.O. and the World Automobile Association, FIA, too, will have what it takes to integrate further attractive events to keep on promoting this sport. This rally represented the start into a new cross-country rallying era. »

You mentioned the higher competitiveness. Did the drivers have to take higher risks than in other cross-country rallies ?
« The mix of world-class field and short special stages made for the most exciting rally we have experienced since having entered the sport, back in 2004. To succeed in the end, our drivers certainly had to take their cars and themselves to their very limits throughout the event. Due to the accidents of Mark Miller and Giniel de Villiers, we lost two of our cars, during the rally – but these incidents definitely haven't been the result of having taken too high risks. Giniel de Villiers and his co-driver, Dirk von Zitzewitz, somersaulted because of a mistake in the road-book but apart from this mistake, the drivers could rely on it, thanks to the good preparation executed by A.S.O. And thanks to the good safety features of our car, the drivers survived the incident unharmed. »

How do you asses the third place secured by Dieter Depping and Timo Gottschalk in their rally debut with the Race Touareg ?
« For me, it was anything but a surprise that Dieter Depping and Timo Gottschalk are a fast pairing. After all, this was the reason why we opted for selecting them as driver/co-driver combination. The only question was: do they have what it takes to cope with the pressure, in this world-class field featuring our ‘Dakar' competitors? But they delivered in truly great style, in this environment. In the battle for seconds with Luc Alphand, Dieter Depping responded very confidently, pushed whenever it proved to be necessary – and kept his cool, nevertheless. And his co-driver, Timo Gottschalk, always found the proper route. A really successful debut for the pairing.»

© CAPSIS International