Nani Roma and Alex Haro, at the helm of the Ford Ranger T1+ No. 210, reached the final podium of the Dakar 2024 this morning, located in Yanbu. After withdrawing due to engine problems on the 14th, M-Sport got the car ready to resume the race, allowing the Spanish duo to complete the remaining five stages and reach the end of the race, gathering a wealth of data and accumulating valuable experience for future editions.

In addition to Roma-Haro, the crew of the second Ranger T1+ No. 225, driven by South Africans Gareth Woolridge–Boyd Dreyer, also managed to reach the finish line, having suffered an accident in the same stage where the Spanish team had a mechanical issue. Therefore, the evening of January 14th to 15th was a time of frenetic activity at the M-Sport facility located at the Shubaytah stage finish.

The Ranger's race continued once both vehicles were repaired, and from that point on, an exhaustive process of race testing was undertaken to shape the future and the upcoming Dakar with much more experience. Although Nani Roma–Alex Haro aimed for a top-ten position in the second week of the competition, the sudden withdrawal eliminated this possibility. Nevertheless, they achieved some very interesting partial results, such as 9th place in the eleventh and penultimate stage (Al Ula–Yanbu) and 12th in the ninth (Hail–Al Ula).

The toughness of this just-concluded Dakar has been evident in all teams, as technical issues were compounded by punctures that disrupted any strategy. In soft dunes or on rocky tracks, in vast expanses or in the trickiest sections, Nani and Alex performed perfectly in this debut of M-Sport Ford in the premier off-road rally. "We made it!" commented visibly satisfied Nani Roma on the podium. "Looking at the race in perspective, I think everyone, the team and the drivers, gave their all to reach the finish line, no matter in what position. This effort will be rewarded in the future of the program."

Nani Roma encapsulates his competitive and team spirit well: "In the Dakar, you never know what might happen. After many years with victories and defeats, good and bad moments, this year an unexpected setback came our way that I found hard to face. But it had to be accepted; there was no other option. The technical issue we experienced last Sunday left us with no chance of achieving a good result, and it happened just when we had a shot at a top-ten finish."

"That day was one of those when you experience defeat because being in the race is the only thing that drives us. But after so many years, I have something very clear: our team's goal is to constantly learn from the car, cover many kilometers to improve it gradually, learn from the terrain, etc. And this is a long journey. That's why we don't give up. With the team's help in getting the Ranger back in shape, we went out the next day, regardless of not competing for anything. The goal? Reach the end of the Dakar with much more experience than the day we started. And we've achieved that, because that's also what drives us."

"I want to thank my co-pilot, Alex Haro, for the great job he has done. Also, the entire medical team that supported me in the previous months and during the race. Additionally, I must emphasize that our goals could not have been achieved without the fantastic team behind us: the M-Sport technicians who worked day and night on the car. To all of them, with Matthew Wilson at the forefront: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! We have reached the finish line of Dakar 2024, and we continue: the program with the new car truly begins now."

When M-Sport and Ford Performance engineers are well-established in Europe, they will focus all their efforts and energy on completing the most important future work: the new Ford Raptor T1+ that is currently under construction. With the first unit well advanced, the team led by Matthew Wilson, with the sporting collaboration of Nani Roma, will immerse themselves in creating a new T1+ concept that should undergo its first trial in a few weeks. According to Roma's words, "It will be a very well-made and superb-looking car, an innovative raid vehicle, I can assure you."