CAN - AM

Francisco “Chaleco” Lopez won the world SSV T3 Prototypes category championship in Andalusia last October, 15 years after winning the two-wheel crown in 2006. The Chilean is one of the biggest South American stars of the discipline and has lifted the Dakar Touareg trophy in the SSV category in 2019, 2021 and 2022. “Chaleco” made his debut in 2007 when the rally was still navigating the African sands. In his seven motorbike participations from 2007 to 2014, he twice finished on the podium with third-place results in 2010 and 2013. In 2011 he finished fourth, while the remaining four ended in retirement, totalling 11 stage victories. After a five-year hiatus, the Curicó native returned to the Dakar in 2019 in a new category, the side-by-side, making a quick adaptation and winning the title in the edition held in Peru. In 2020, in Saudi Arabia, he took third place with two stage victories. In 2021, “Chaleco” showed an exceptional level, winning in two categories: light vehicles and SSV, with 5 stage victories. He took the lead on stage 6, then lost the lead due to a mechanical failure, but regained it on stage 9 and never looked back. In 2022, facing Red Bull racers Cristina Gutierrez and Seth Quintero, “Chaleco” didn't even need a stage victory to return to the top step of the T3 podium. After winning the championship, the Chilean idol is now concentrating full-time on the Dakar and is looking forward to the 2023 calendar, which will include two events in the Americas: Mexico and Argentina. Juan Pablo Latrach -who is making his tenth Dakar appearance after a year in which he also competed at the international level- completes the formula to go for another victory with a Can-Am XRS in one of the most competitive categories.