N° 047 - TEAM YAMAHA HOLLAND TEAM

WILLEMSEN Daniel NLD 07/05/1975

Vehicle

MODEL	MAKE
WRF 450	YAMAHA

Daniel Willemsen: «The side-car has become easy »

What does one do when their first Dakar ran to perfection? They do it again. For Daniel Willimsen the question doesn’t even need to be asked. “It was such a good time to be in the race! And everything also went so well”.

There was something else as well for the Dutch rider, besides the 48th place result overall and 10th in the 450 category. It was also a way of getting away from his other career, that of a motocross side-car racer. A splendid one at that…Daniel has six world titles, including five consecutive to his credit. “After six world championship victories, I was in need of another target, a new challenge,” explains the full-time mechanic. Daniel learned the subtleties of the road book the hard way. “What I remember the most is when I got lost in the desert. I had no idea where I was and how to find my way. Before my team found me and got me going, I really felt all alone in the world. It was a very strong feeling, something I’ll never forget.”

Daniel had already forged a mental strength of steel thanks to his side-car racing but with his experience last year he still doesn’t think he can compete with the top riders. “I still have a lot of parameters to master.”

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