he 48th edition of the Dakar Rally features two notable participants from Austria this year. Mark Mateschitz, co-owner of Red Bull and son of founder Dietrich Mateschitz, will appear at the start in Yanbu under the pseudonym Mark Mustermann. His partner Victoria Swarovski, heiress to the crystal glass empire, will also compete in the desert rally.
The 33-year-old Mateschitz, considered the 38th richest person in the world, will get behind the wheel of a Toyota Hilux T1+ from his own team MM Rallye on January 3rd. Alongside him sits navigator Michael Zajc, for whom this will be his first Dakar. The duo has steadily built up experience in rally sport over the past year and a half. In 2024, they competed in several Bajas in a Can-Am Maverick X3, including events in Dubai, Portugal, and Poland. This season they switched to the T1+ class and participated in three Bajas (Italy, Greece, and Spain) plus two W2RC rounds in Portugal and Morocco. Their best result came in Greece, where they finished fifth.
Photos: Red Bull Content Pool
The 32-year-old Swarovski has also registered under an alias: Vic Flip. She will start in the SSV category with a Can-Am Maverick R, also from MM Rallye. Sitting beside her is Stefan Henken, who is heading into his eighth Dakar participation. The experienced German completed five editions between 2017 and 2021 as navigator in the truck alongside Mathias Behringer, continued in 2022 and 2023 in a truck alongside Michael Helminger, and last year sat beside Lukas Lauda (son of Niki Lauda) in a Can-Am in the Challenger category. Swarovski announced her Dakar debut last summer in an interview with RTL and gathered rally experience this year with participations in Bajas in Portugal, Dubai, and Spain. In the Italian Baja she achieved 22nd place in the SSV class.
Other notable names at the start include five-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah, four-time winner Carlos Sainz senior, and nine-time WRC champion Sébastien Loeb. The participation of the Austrian couple under false names was revealed by the Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung, which made the connection through matching birth dates on the official entry list.
