Eryk Goczał made his emergence on the radar of the rally-raid discipline via the Dakar last year, like a shooting star through the SSV category, racing by at the speed of sound. With a win at the tender age of 18 years, the Polish driver became the youngest winner in the event’s history before disappearing to devote himself to his studies. He has returned for his 2nd Dakar in the Challenger class, in which he is aiming for another title before the world crown in the W2RC. It is a challenge worthy of the kid with the eternal smile, around whom the Goczał galaxy revolves. His father Marek and uncle Michał have followed in his footsteps and the impact is already being felt by the established names in the former T3 category, who, having got rid of the other prodigy, Seth Quintero, had hoped to have a tilt at the title in peace. Mitch Guthrie has already suffered the domination of the Poles but is showing himself to be up to the challenge. With a win today, Mitch Junior brought Eryk’s series of three consecutive victories since the start in AlUla to a close. This evening, drifting off to sleep under the stars over the bivouac, the youngest of the Goczał clan still boasts a lead of 15’47’’ over his father and 15’58’’ over the American.
