On Sunday a prologue for the race will take place - a competition after which the positions of participant teams for the Oct. 11 start will be determined.
Teams led by pilots Firdaus Kabirov (navigator Ildar Kabirov, mechanic Andrei Mokeyev) and Ilgizar Mardeyev (navigator Stanislav Konopko, mechanic Vladimir Golub).
Prime Minister of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, who has won the Desert Challenge three times, has headed the team and the third crew (navigator Aidar Belyaev, mechanic Vladimir Chagin).
In the class of heavy sport vehicles, Russian sportsmen will face Italian crews of Pierre Paolo Bonetti (Iveco), Giuseppe Panceri (Mercedes), and French racers (Hammer) headed by Patrick Brisse.
78 bikers, 50 car crews and six truck crews are going to challenge the desert.
"We regard our participation in this race as the concluding part of the program of preparation of sport vehicles and crews for Dakar-2005," said Semyon Yakubov, the head of Kamaz-master. In his words, throughout the year, the team has been intensively working on reducing the weight of trucks, improving their construction and increasing the reliability of their systems and units.
Besides, stressed Mr. Yakubov, the UAE race will pay special attention to practicing the tactics of interaction of crews on the route, as well as the efficiency of repairs and maintenance on the bivouac. The Kamaz-master team has five times won the Desert Challenge rally before, said the Kamaz press service.
