DAKAR 2021: LIVE Präsentation der neuen Route / LIVE presentation of the new route!

“We often hear that participating in the Dakar is a victory in itself. This is certainly the feeling that will invigorate us all on January 3rd in Jeddah“, underscored David Castera as he begun the presentation of the 2021 Dakar. The preparation and in particular the reconnaissance, had to be conducted according to a schedule adapted to the 2020 travel restrictions. Similarly, the rally will be held under unusual conditions drafted in a protocol designed to ensure maximum protection against the spread of the Covid-19 virus. But for rally-raid enthusiasts, the discipline’s biggest event will feature the ingredients that „thrill those who set off and make those who stay home dream“, to quote the ethos of its creator, Thierry Sabine.

After an introduction to the Saudi deserts, the 2021 Dakar competitors will receive an even more in-depth lesson in geography. The characteristics of the route as well as the new regulations introduced aim to reduce average speed, further improve safety conditions and highlight the sporting qualities of the competitors. Specifically, the fight for the various titles at stake should put the top competitors, who are used to battling it out at the sharp end of the standings, in competition with each other. In the motorcycle category, Ricky Brabec and Honda put an end to a series of 18 consecutive victories for the Austrian firm KTM, which will return with an all-star line-up of riders to try to begin another Dakar winning streak, while the reigning quad category champion, Ignacio Casale, will set off on a new challenge in the truck category, the same class in which he discovered the Dakar in 2010. 2020 winner in the car category behind the wheel of a Mini X-Raid buggy, Carlos Sainz returns with the same ambition but maybe not with the same good fortune that allowed him to control the threat of Toyota’s Nasser Al-Attiyah. With an already lively competition between the two leading constructors, the competition will be intensified by the return of Sebastien Loeb, who, like Joan „Nani“ Roma in the private BRX team, will be back. Cyril Despres and Mike Horn, who have launched a project for an alternative energy vehicle for the Dakar, will be another duo to keep an eye on. And 2019 SSV category winner, Francisco „Chaleco“ López from Chile will be the man to beat, in a category where the hierarchy however is constantly changing.

While the Dakar participants will head into action on January 2nd with a short prologue (11 km) to determine the starting position of each competitor for the opening stage, they will have to go through several intermediate steps before then. A majority of the vehicles will be summoned to Marseille on December 1st, 2nd and 3rd to be loaded on to a cargo ship, direction Jeddah. The meeting on the shores of the Red Sea with the owners will take place on December 30th and 31st, while the technical and administrative checks will be conducted on January 1st and 2nd in accordance with health protection regulations, as required by the period we live in.

Original by Motul: the culture of challenge
The ‘’malles-motos’’ area, as the old-timers say, is the sector of the intractable, who have chosen a Dakar where the word challenge takes on its full meaning. On a motorbike or quad, 34 competitors will participate in the most demanding conditions, i.e. by looking after their machines themselves after spending the day in the stage. For them the nights are short and the race is a daily struggle. Prepared for this task, they are, however, fully aware of the need to give priority to managing their equipment and riding prudently. Above all fascinated by the adventure, these riders are no less competitive and are vying for a coveted title. Romania’s Emanuel Gyenes is a three-time winner in the category and will be one of the men to watch, as will France’s Benjamin Melot and Portugal’s Mario Patrao, who makes his debut among the “Originals”. This brotherhood also welcomes for the first time a Saudi rider, Mishal Alghuneim, who completed the rally last year with the help of a service crew, as well as an Indian, Ashish Raorane. Another to keep an eye on will be veteran rider Franco Picco, who finished on the podium of the African Dakar three times (1985, 1988, 1989), as well as Willy Jobard, who will spice things up by trying his luck on a hydrogen-powered hybrid bike.