Jakarta –
Two racers from Indonesia made history in the most extreme race in the world, the Dakar Rally. In fact, one of them had won at one stage.
The two Indonesian racers who made history in the Dakar Rally are Julian ‘Jejelogy’ Johan and Shammie Baridwan. They raced in the Dakar Rally with the Compagnie Saharienne team.
Quoted from the official Dakar Rally website, until the final stage, Jeje (Julian Johan’s nickname) was ranked fifth overall in the Classic category. Meanwhile, Shammie fills position seven.
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“Alhamdulillahi rabbil ‘alamin, all my friends, it turns out that I was also able to finish Dakar, a championship that has been my dream since I was little. And apparently not only that, we were still given favors, we were given good fortune to be able to finish on the last day with results that I think are very good. Thank God, we got 5th place overall, 3rd place in the class, and in the Iconic Classic class we got first place,” said Jeje with emotion, quoted from his Instagram account.
“Being here for two weeks feels like yesterday I just had a dream, watching on TV, looking in magazines, I wanted to feel like one day I could be here. It turns out, thank God, with determination, with seriousness in trying to find a way to finally be here. It all paid off today. Thank you once again, everyone, I hope it can be an inspiration, can be positive energy for us in Indonesia, for automotive sports or anything else,” he said.
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Julian Johan at Reli Bakar Photo: Doc. Friend
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Jeje took part in the Dakar Rally with the Compagnie Saharienne team. He was accompanied by Mathieu Monplaisi of France as navigator. Jeje drives a Toyota Land Cruiser 100 (HDJ 100) with a 4.2L 6 cylinder turbo engine.
Meanwhile, Shammie Baridwan, who was also supported by the Compagnie Saharienne team, was accompanied by navigator Ignas Daunoravicius from Lithuania. Shammie drives a Toyota Land Cruiser 70 (HZJ 78) with a 4.2 liter 6 cylinder engine.
 Shammie Baridwan di Reli Dakar Photo: Dok. Dakar |
If you search the archives thoroughly, there is no trace of an Indonesian racer in the history of Dakar. However, that doesn’t mean that off-road culture is foreign to Indonesia. Jeje and Shammie have been around the world of motorsport.
“This is the greatest adventure for me, like for anyone. Just being on the start podium is an achievement. The early stages were like a dream come true. This is the first time I have competed in a race for consistency and it is not as easy as it seems, but I try to learn more every day,” said Jeje, quoted by the official Dakar Rally website.
Even though it was their first experience, Jeje and Shammie succeeded in becoming tough competitors on the Dakar Rally track. In fact, Shammie won 2nd place in stage 1 and 1st place in stage 11.
 Shammie Baridwan di Reli Dakar Photo: Dok. Dakar |
“We’ve known each other since middle school, about 20 years. We’ve done a lot of road trips, camping and racing together, so when I saw him win today, of course I was very happy and proud of him,” said Jeje when welcoming Shammie to become champion on stage 11.
Shammie also does not hesitate to attribute this success to a true partnership. “I won today, but it was Jeje who brought me here and our main goal is to reach the finish line of the Dakar Classic together. We are in two different crews but we form one team, for Indonesia,” said Shammie.
For your information, the Dakar Rally is the most extreme race in the world. This rally is not just about speed racing. The Dakar Rally is physically demanding and requires precise strategy and navigation. The Dakar Rally was held on a challenging route in Saudi Arabia through deserts, rocky terrain and mountain passes. This year, the Dakar Rally will be held for two weeks, from January 3 2026 to January 17 2026.
(rgr/from)
