01 / The finish
A finish built long before the start.
On 17 January 2026, Daniel Pycock and Francisco Javier Gómez Espigares brought car 756 to the finish of the Dakar Classic in Saudi Arabia.
They competed with Pedrega Team in an original 1993 Mitsubishi Pajero. The official final classification placed the crew 84th overall after the thirteenth and final stage.
The result was not the product of a single decision. It grew from years of amateur rallying, mechanical preparation, professional partnership and a willingness to keep moving when the plan stopped being comfortable.
In his contributed article Don’t drive tired, Daniel connects his Dakar Classic experience with fatigue, preparation and leadership in live-event production. Published in StandOut’s October 2026 issue, pages 71–72.
Further reading: Slow and steady wins the race. Daniel Pycock reflects on how preparation, teamwork and consistency connect his experience finishing the 2026 Dakar Classic with live-event production. This first-person contribution was published in TPiMEA’s Feedback section on 7 October 2026 under Peter Iantorno’s byline.