Brp

The Goczal steam roller

Marek Goczal is the eldest of the two Polish brothers who made a remarkable debut on the 2021 Dakar by finishing 8th and 4th respectively in T4. Marek, 46, is also the father of Eryk, 16, still too young for the Dakar, but already competing in the national drift championship. The Goczals' ultimate goal? For all three to be on the Dakar podium! And Marek doesn’t lack ambition. In Poland, he’s the boss of the country's biggest theme park: Energylandia. Last January, the Goczal brothers finished just off the podium, Marek 4th and Michal 5th! To achieve his goal of getting the whole family on the Dakar and why not the W2RC podium, Marek has put his trust in Lukasz Laskawiec as co-driver. His compatriot has already finished on the Dakar podium in the quad category in 2011 before winning the world championship the following year. Marek was third overall going into the second round of the W2RC. With 68 points, he was tied with Rokas Baciuska, a newcomer to rally-raid like him. In November 2021, Marek finished 2nd on the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. He won it last March ahead of the Lithuanian and Austin Jones. The American conserved his lead overall just ahead of the Pole. On the third round of the championship, it was Baciuska who put on a show, winning the class and taking 11th place all FIA categories combined. Marek,falling foul of mechanical problems, could do no better than 11th in T4. But by charging each day, he pocketed enough daily points to limit the damage. Jones was trying to do the same thing after a tough day that saw him finish at the bottom of the standings at the end of the race (54th FIA, 16th T4). When it came time to count the scores, Marek took the lead in the championship (152 points) ahead of Baciuska (151 points) with Jones third (150 points). A scenario worthy of Hollywood blockbuster!