Nani Roma: “It was the best stage of my life”

“It was the best stage of my life,” said Nani Roma, who was very happy to have passed the difficult test. He has competed 28 other times and won two titles (one on a motorcycle and one on a car) and this statement says everything about what he did yesterday. He said this with absolute conviction how hard he pushed, taking as many risks as possible, with everything going against him, in a complex terrain full of sand dunes and high-speed areas.

He started in second place and had a great chance to follow in Ford’s footsteps and gain some time, with his rivals chasing the win. That’s why he went to the fire. still. There was nothing left. He had already caught up with his teammate Gasly at the 60km mark and from there he carved his way through the course until he completed the 326km sand special. Until then, he never stopped pushing. He even had to take paracetamol because his back hurt from the constant bouncing of the car when it was driving hard. he didn’t care. I wanted to compress it to minimize loss. And he did it.

Therefore, without hesitation, he once again made a strong statement in front of the Spanish press: “I am having my best moment with the car.” That’s not a small amount. The 53-year-old driver from Folgerol (February 17, 1972) passed that test with a time loss of only 5 minutes and 31 seconds compared to stage winner and new leader Al Attiyah, who started very late, all thanks to acceleration in his favor. Nani was able to move up to third place overall with a 9 minute 13 second lead over Qatar, but he had already changed his strategic position and was falling into the same trend as Nasser. When he attacks, so will Nani.

His great performance is good news after he has suffered so much in his personal life in recent years, after overcoming cancer and then going through the difficult experience of his son Mark suffering a motocross accident that left him paraplegic at the age of 15. The number 371 Mark wore on his motocross bike, along with a small sticker on the side of the car, was provided by Nani to accompany Mark on this adventure.

However, Nani does not believe that he owes his life to this Dakar, no matter how unfair his fate. If he wins, it will mean he deserves it. “I believe I can win, but I’m not asking anything from anyone. Life comes as it comes. You have to accept things and work, work, work. That’s what I’ve been doing in life,” he told MD.