Toyota Gazoo Racing has confirmed that it will be using the Hilux once again to try to win the grueling Dakar Rally. At the same time, Toyota’s motorsports division has announced its official list of drivers pooling an all-star line-up.

Following Toyota Gazoo Racing (and Toyota)’s philosophy of “making ever-better cars,” the 2020 Hilux is a further evolution to the 2019 model which won the event outright. This Hilux features fully independent suspension, a mid-mounted engine, and all-wheel drive. A 5.0-liter naturally-aspirated V8 sits just behind the front wheels.

With the Dakar Rally scheduled to take place for the first time in Saudi Arabia in January 2020, Toyota has officially announced the members of its works team which is divided into four crews: Nasser Al-Attiyah and navigator Mathieu Baumel; Giniel de Villiers and navigator Alex Haro; Bernhard Ten Brinke and navigator Tom Colsoul; and Fernando Alonso and navigator Marc Coma.

The 2020 Dakar Rally will be contested solely in Saudi Arabia, with the rally starting on January 5, 2020 in the western city of Jeddah. The route will head north, before turning south-east to the capital city of Riyadh where crews will enjoy the traditional event rest day. The second half of the 2020 Dakar Rally traverses through Rub’ al Khali, also known as the “Empty Quarter”, the world’s largest contiguous sand desert, before finishing in the city of Al-Qiddiya on January 17.