A great Maroc Challenge for Semeraro and Pirotta: "It’s our Dakar…"

Brianzolians Paolo Semeraro and Gianluca Pirotta were protagonists at the Maroc Challenge with their Jeep Wrangler: they placed fifth in their category, doing better than the other Italian crews in the race. Sportal.it talked about it with Pirotta, a villasantese doc with a decent basketball background and a striking resemblance to the comedian Pucci, with whom he is often confused.

When did your passion for the world of motors begin?
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I have always been fascinated by engines. It is a passion that I have carried with me all my life and it has never left me.

Is there a particular race that made you dream?
Without a doubt, the Dakar. I have followed it since the first edition in 1977 through specialized newspapers. I always dreamed of participating, maybe with a truck. That dream has remained there, in the drawer, for almost 50 years.

But then something changed…
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It has. After 31 years of racing in rally motor racing, the opportunity arose to participate in a competition very similar to the Dakar: the Maroc Challenge. It is a race that traces in every way the first editions of the Dakar and is also used by many crews as preparation.

What kind of race is the Maroc Challenge?
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It is a very adventurous race. The most important thing here is to safeguard the vehicle. At the end of each stage, a total of six, my driver, Paolo Semeraro, and I had to solve any problems on our own, using only the spare parts we had with us.

Did you have any problems during the race?
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Fortunately, we didn’t get a puncture, and that’s already a lot. Paolo was very good at interpreting the terrain. We broke two rear shocks and their mounts, but we managed to replace them and weld everything in place.

What kind of experience was it from the human point of view?
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Miles and miles in the desert. Sand, dunes, rocks and nothingness all around. It’s a great experience, although at the moment you feel like, “But who made me do it?” Then, day after day, it takes you more and more. The best memory remains the night at the Berber bivouac.

And from the sports point of view?
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In spite of everything, we achieved an excellent result: fifth overall in our category out of 40 entrants.

Looking ahead, what do you take with you from this adventure?
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The classic Africa sickness. And a certainty: see you next year!