Hubert Auriol

Who is Hubert Auriol?

Hubert Auriol is a former French racing driver and former director of the Paris-Dakar Rally. Auriol was the first racer to win the Dakar in both bikes and automobiles.

Auriol began competing in motocross and enduro events in 1973. From 1979 to 1994, he took part in the Paris-Dakar Rally, taking part in the first nine events on a bike and the remaining seven on a car. On a bike, he won the event in 1981 and 1983 on a BMW R80G/S entered by BMW France, finishing in second in 1984. He broke both ankles on the penultimate day of the 1987 edition, while he was in the lead. He wrote a book with the French journalist Jean-Michel Caradec'h, "Paris Dakar. Une histoire d'hommes" about this story. Then Auriol switched to the car class in 1988, first racing a works Mitsubishi Pajero Proto T3, but after losing the event to Ari Vatanen in 1990, switched to the Citroën team, winning in 1992 with a ZX Rallye Raid, co-driven by Philippe Monnet.

In 1994, Auriol joined Dakar organizer ASO and became race director of the event he won for three times, starting in the 1995 edition. He headed the event until the 2004 edition, when he was replaced by Patrick Zaniroli. Hubert Auriol currently lives in Suresnes with his wife and three children. He is not related to former World Rally Champion Didier Auriol.