"Thanks to the team spirit and my co-driver Timo Gottschalk, with whom I got on perfectly from the outset, I'm sure that I'll be able to make my dream of winning the 'Dakar' come true in January."

Volkswagen motorsport director, Kris Nissen meanwhile was delighted to see his two men do so well and put in such a convincing performance, both finishing over 3.5 hours up on Jean Azevedo, who was 'best of the rest' and third in his Mitsubishi L200 Evo.

"If I could award a maximum of five stars for perfect work I'd give each and every team member exactly five stars," Nissen summed-up. "The one-two victory here in Brazil can be credited equally to the team and the drivers. The work of the entire crew was perfect, just as it was at the Dakar Rally.

"The outstanding job by Carlos Sainz, Nasser Al-Attiyah and their co-drivers makes me just as optimistic about the future.

"Both would have deserved victory and, in the end, were separated by just a few minutes after a tough fight."