Shammie Zacky Baridwan will be the first Indonesian driver to compete in the Dakar Classic when he makes his debut in 2026. He will race a Toyota Land Cruiser HZJ78 from Compagnie Saharienne.

Baridwan mainly competes in rallying across Southeast Asia, racing in events like the Danau Toba Rally with a Mitsubishi Lancer CK4.

In 2023, he entered the Asia Cross Country Rally for the first time, driving a mostly stock Toyota Hilux in the T2A-D category. He dealt with tire punctures in the second and third stages, prompting him to replace them with a stronger set. In Stage 4, the truck fell into a creek. Despite the snags, he managed to finish 19th overall and third in class.

Compagnie Saharienne is a French team that fielded five Land Cruisers at the 2025 Dakar Classic. Like Baridwan with Indonesia, the team fielded the first Indian car driver at Dakar in January when Sanjay Takale finished 18th overall and tenth in H1.B. Baridwan’s Land Cruiser was initially built for the Dakar Rally’s organizers before Compagnie Saharienne bought it.

Ignas Daunoravičius, who finished third overall at the 2025 Classic, will serve as his navigator.

Although Baridwan is the first Indonesian to do the Dakar Classic, he and fellow AXCR driver Julian Johan will be the third and fourth from their country to race Dakar in general. Johan is running the main Dakar Rally, following in the footsteps of Tinton Soeprapto and Kasih Hanggoro; Soeprapto did the 1990 Dakar Rally while Hanggoro entered the 2010 and 2011 Rallies.

Featured image credit: Indonesia Cross Country Rally Team