The Repsol rider will experience his first contest in a car at this mythic event
It will only be a first contact, a brief incursion or a nice chance, as explained by Marc Coma himself, assuring that his place is still in the motorbike class and that we will surely see him on his Repsol KTM 660 at the 2007 Lisbon Dakar Rally.
Thanks to the support of Repsol YPF, Mitsubishi Spain and Mitsubishi Competition MMSP, the winner of the 2006 Lisbon Dakar Rally and 2005 Raid World Champion, will face in late July his first participation in an event at the wheel of a modified series car, a Mitsubishi Montero 3.2 Diesel MC01, with which he will be taking the start at the coming Baja España Madrid Aragón. Making use of the almost two-month break the Repsol rider is enjoying now and of the fact that the Baja Aragón is no scoring round of the Raids World Championship, this international event has turned out to be the best chance for Coma, to take a quick glance at the future and to enjoy his first contact with competition on four wheels. After this car experience, Marc Coma will be back on his Repsol KTM 660 at the Egypt Rally on September 30th, continuing with his preparation programme for the 2007 Lisbon Dakar Rally.
Next Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th July, Marc Coma will be making his first private tests at the wheel of the Mitsubishi Montero 3.2 Diesel MC01 with which he will be taking part in the legendary international race. His co-driver will be the Spaniard Ignacio Salvador, an experimented navigator who has already contested several Dakar Rallies and Baja Aragón events.
Marc Coma: Im very happy and Im really looking forward to this chance Repsol YPF and Mitsubishi have offered me. So the first thing I want to do is to thank them all for this big present. This will be with no doubt a big experience for me because it will be my first contact with competition on four wheels. It will be an experience with no pressure at all; it will only be a first contact. This does not mean that Im going to change over to the four wheels, thats far from reality. My place is still in motorbikes and we have been preparing our participation in the 2007 Lisbon Dakar all year. Its true that this could be an option for the future but its not in my plans right now. After winning the Dakar this year, this has been a chance we have been offered and I was looking forward to live an experience like this. Moreover, the Baja España Madrid Aragón is no scoring round for the World Championship so we do not sacrifice anything for participating. I’ll try to have fun and live a new experience; Im not planning to finish in any special position; I just want to know how I feel on four wheels in a competition.
