Team Spierings has managed to finish the Dakar Rally successfully for the fourth time in a row. The first three times, Paul did this on a motorcycle, but during this edition he took off in a buggy together with Jan Pieter van der Stelt. Most of the Rally went very well for the team allowing them to gain valuable experience in the buggy/SSV class.

Team Spierings lost time in the seventh stage of the Rally. After 100 kilometers, the ball joint broke down. This setback caused them to fall back to 24th place in the standings. In the eighth stage the team was in the top ten for a long time, but just before the finish line they were overtaken. Eventually they crossed the finish line in 12th place. This was the highest positioning of the team.

In the ninth and tenth stage the team drove through varied terrain of large dunes, sand and beautiful mountains. During the tenth stage Paul and Jan Pieter managed to finish nineteenth and this was also their ranking after ten stages. According to the drivers, stage eleven was the toughest day of the Rally. In the beginning there were many dunes that were very soft and sometimes difficult to cross. In the very last stage the team took no big risks and managed to come in at twenty-first place. This resulted in a great final classification in nineteenth place.

They also finished as the best classified Dutchman in the general classification, which is a great achievement in this first year in the SVV class. MPM, ERA and Optimal congratulate the team with this achievement and are very proud!