Dakar 2027: Hamza and Pásztor, two Hungarian outsiders

The 2027 Dakar is also being prepared far from the factory teams. Two Hungarians, Péter Hamza (Stock class, in a Nissan Patrol) and András Pásztor (Dakar Classic, in a former UN Toyota Land Cruiser), will test their cars this weekend at the Hungarian Baja, ahead of a start from 9 January in Portugal and Morocco.

Hamza: a lighter Patrol against the factories

The Stock class was dominated in 2026 by Defender Rally, which ended Team Land Cruiser Toyota Auto Body's 12-year winning streak at the Dakar. Toyota did win the final stage of the Rallye du Maroc last month. Both teams are backed by Jaguar Land Rover and Toyota Motor Corporation.

Hamza, of the Tireman team, was one of only two non-factory Stock drivers in January: he and Majed Al-Thunayyan finished in the bottom two, with times above 200 hours. His Patrol had been built from parts of two wrecked Nissans. For 2027 the Hungarian reports a lighter car, between two and three hundred kilos less, a better chassis and more options for shock absorbers thanks to a new sponsor.

His aim is not to win stages: he points out that the Dakar is an endurance event and that his modest team can rely on fast repairs, where the factory teams may have to wait for the service truck. It will be his third Dakar; in 2025 he finished 60th in the Dakar Classic in a Mitsubishi Pajero.

Pásztor: a 1999 Land Cruiser from the UN to the Dakar Classic

András Pásztor, a five-time winner of the Budapest–Bamako Rally, which he has entered since 2014, is targeting the Dakar Classic, a category that made a dream he thought unattainable possible. His 1999 Land Cruiser, from the UN peacekeeping programme, was bought online a year ago, stripped down, repaired and rebuilt to the regulations. With navigator Mihály Sajbán, he prepared at SSV driving camps and desert tours in Tunisia, useful since the 2027 Dakar is run in Morocco. With no service team, he will have to repair the car himself in the race. He will run with Qualisport, a Hungarian team that entered a truck at the 2026 Dakar.

A Dakar turned back to Europe and Africa

According to Mundo Deportivo, the 2027 Dakar starts on 9 January in Portugal and Morocco, after the change of host country. The renewable fuels Repsol develops with Toyota will then be tested in real conditions. The Hungarian Baja, postponed from August to November, serves as a rehearsal for both crews before the big start.