Latest news with #rallyraid
ABC News
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- ABC News
Off-road motorbike champion Daniel Sanders eyes further international wins after Dakar Rally success
The chances of coming across a Dakar Rally winner at work in regional Australia, knee-deep in a farm dam, are always slim — but never zero. Victorian motorbike racer Daniel Sanders is that slim chance. The 30-year-old, a rising star in the high-speed world of rally-raid — and winner of one of the world's toughest races in January — is focused on the third race of the 2025 World Rally-Raid Championship this week. But lately, his mind's been put to much lower-adrenaline pursuits. Sanders had previously said if he wasn't a racer, he'd probably be a farmer. "Apples are in full swing here at the moment," he said of his 12-week break from competition, at the family farm about 65km from Melbourne. "The old man's flat-out picking. I'm just tidying up some machines … It's been a really dry end to the summer, so we're cleaning out dams and making sure they're ready to fill up for next summer." Sanders Apples is a fourth-generation, 100-acre orchard growing on the slopes of a Yarra Valley hillside in Three Bridges — a locale home to about 200 people and innumerable bush tracks. Beneath the canopies of towering native eucalypts, soft-edged roads wind through the valley's hills. It's the Aussie's home away from the overseas desert tracks over which he's lately firmed his reputation as a tactical and uncompromising competitor. Rally-raid is a mixed-class category: high-powered dirt bikes race alongside almost futuristic, purpose-built rally cars, and even quad bikes. It's a tactical race against the clock on epic, constantly-changing courses that take days to complete. The World Championship consists of five races this year, beginning with the famed Dakar Rally — which Sanders won convincingly. After that win — making Sanders the second Australian to win The Dakar after Toby Price — and the celebrations that ensued, Sanders returned to Three Bridges as family duty called. Even the winner of one of the world's toughest races still had to help around the farm — not that he complained. "I've been pretty busy between training and working on those [farm] machines," he said. "Tidying things up and making it a bit easier for my old man and my uncles. "Making sure the irrigation's good and all the water's running as well." Days in the paddock — sunrise to sunset, he said — might seem an unusual distraction for a world-class motorbike racer — especially one who leads a World Championship approaching the season's half-way point. Some competitors might spend their days burning around a test track or poring over data seeking an edge for the next event. To be sure: he'd kept up his training, and wasn't short of social engagements. But work around the farm — training his mind to hone a different kind of focus than the type needed for days spent flat-out on a motorbike — would, he hoped, help sharpen him for the season's remaining week-long races. "When you jump back on a bike it makes you really enjoy it and keeps you motivated." But inevitably, after a nearly three-month break, the championship race has pulled him back to competition. The farming gear has been switched for racing leathers, hat for a helmet, and from work gloves to racing ones — CHUCKY, his nickname, emblazoned on them above a bright cartoon of a honey-dripped apple. Now the focus is on the pursuit of victory over the coming days, this time in southern Africa. The five-day Safari Rally marks the World Rally-Raid Championship's first visit to South Africa, and presents distinctly different challenges to those posed in North Africa and Arabia, where Sanders has lately excelled. Shifting desert dunes, with red-gold sand rising like giant waves, have been the backdrop for each of Sanders' recent wins in Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. In South Africa, competitors expect more solid ground. Organisers say dirt and gravel will make up three-quarters of the rally's 1,600 kilometre, five-day route through the country's expansive northern middleveld and highveld — midfield and highfield — a broad area outside Johannesburg defined by its changing vegetation and soils, rising from 600 to 1,800 metres above sea level. Water crossings, dense bushland and open plains are promised — maybe even a close encounter with one of Africa's famed natural predators. Sanders expects a close race but, he said, he's hopeful the conditions have parallels to Australia. A potential home advantage, only 10,000km from the farm. "To lose 10 to 20 seconds overshooting an intersection, having to do a U-turn and come back — I think that's where you're going to lose it," he said. Over the journey, riders and drivers will navigate an arid and unpredictable path. It's a solo race against the clock — no GPS, no directions, just a digital roadbook and instinct. How they reach the finish — that's largely up to them. It means sharpened wit is needed as much as a quick throttle to find the fastest route, often concluding at a campsite hundreds of kilometres from the start line. A victory is worth 30 points, second place 25, 20 for third. A retirement? Just one. And any one of Sanders' rivals could take the win. The championship's second-placed rider Tosha Schareina (ESP) spent part of the break winning a 650km race through Portugal and Spain. Third-placed Ricky Brabec (USA) won a rally in Las Vegas last week. Last year's champion Ross Branch — from neighbouring Botswana — is among the favourites too. But if having rivals chasing his tail light distracts him, Sanders doesn't show it. "I'm sort of all around it at the moment and have strengths everywhere," he said going into South Africa. "The quicker I can get back into that rhythm, the better the result will be." The South Africa Safari Rally runs April 19-24.
News24
12-05-2025
- Automotive
- News24
World Rally-Raid Championship heats up for historic SA debut
The World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) heads to Southern Africa for the first time in history. The South African Safari Rally is Round 3 of the 2025 W2RC calendar. It takes place from the Sun City Resort from 18-24 May 2025. With its rich history in rally-raid development and competitive success, South Africa will soon be hosting the world championship it helped shape. The entry list for the first World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) event to be held in South Africa reflects the occasion. The South African Safari Rally, brought to you by Toyota Gazoo Racing, forms Round 3 of this year's W2RC calendar and takes place from the Sun City Resort in North West Province from 18-24 May 2025. In the FIA car category, the Ultimate class brings together a veritable who's who of off-road royalty. Nasser Al-Attiyah and Sébastien Loeb spearhead the formidable effort from The Dacia Sandriders. Al-Attiyah is the reigning W2RC champion, the previous round's winner at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, the current championship leader, and navigator Edouard Boulanger. Teammate Loeb is a multiple World Rally champion and regular podium finisher in the rally-raid series. He is a formidable contender for the win, with Fabian Lurquin in the navigator's seat. Former Dakar Rally winners and motorsport legends Carlos Sainz and Nani Roma return to competition behind the wheels of the two Ford M-Sport Raptor entries. Navigator Lucas Cruz joins Sainz while Alex Haro guides Roma. The X-Raid MINI JCW Team adds further depth to the field with their accomplished duo of Guillaume de Mévius/Xavier Panseri and João Ferreira/Filipe Palmeiro. Toyota Gazoo Racing is coming out with all guns blazing, thanks to a five-strong lineup of GR Hilux EVOs. American ace Seth Quintero and navigator Dennis Zenz join Brazilian star Lucas Moraes and Spanish navigator Armand Monleon. There's a trio of local favourites too, comprising this year's Dakar Rally second-place finishers Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings, the youngest Dakar stage winner in the car category Saood Variawa and navigator François Cazalet, as well as Guy Botterill/Dennis Murphy – all determined to make the most of their home advantage on African soil. Four more international Overdrive Racing Toyota Hilux entries are included, as well as a pair of #TeamHilux entries from South Africa, including former Dakar Rally winner Giniel de Villiers. Additional entries from experienced championship-winning local and international drivers and navigators from PS Laser Racing, Century Racing, Red-Lined Motorsport, and Neil Woolridge Motorsport bolster the Ultimate class field and promise top-tier competition for rally-raid fans. Four entries will be vying for victory in the BBR Motorsport Taurus T3 Max in the Challenger class. Dakar Rally winner Nicolas Cavigliasso and navigator Valentina Pertegarini will aim to reclaim the championship lead from teammates Pau Navarro/Lisandro Sisterna. They will also be up against two other crews from the same squad, comprising David Zille/Sebastian Cesana and Dania Akeel/Stephane Duple. Numerous other rivals aim to spoil their fun, including the South African team of Puck Klaassen and Charan Moore. In the SSV (side-by-side vehicle) class, the goal for Alexandre Pinto and Bernardo Oliviera will be to extend their championship lead in the Can-Am Maverick R. They will have the MMP entries of Enrico Gaspari/Fausto Mota and Claude Fournier/Patrick Jimbert hot on their tail, along with a pair of CST Xtreme Plus Polaris entries and several other serious rivals. Motorcycles In the FIM's top RallyGP motorcycle category, the Austrian Red Bull KTM team hopes to make it three in a row at the South African Safari Rally, as Daniel Sanders won both the opening race at the Dakar Rally and Round 2 in Abu Dhabi. Teammate Luciano Benavides will join him on the second KTM 450 Rally. Botswana's Ross Branch leads a two-rider effort from Hero Motorsports, joined by José Ignacio Cornejo. The Monster Energy Honda HRC team arrives in force with four impressive riders ready to challenge for the win, including Ricky Brabec, Skyler Howes, Adrien van Beveren, and Tosha Schareina. Adding to the local flair, South Africa's Bradley Cox debuted with the Sherco Rally Factory Team after his recent signing. Cox is competing in RallyGP this year after winning the Rally2 class in 2024. Current Rally2 championship leader Tobias Ebster has joined the Hero Motosports team leading up to the South African Safari Rally and will give everything to build on his points lead. South African rider Michael Docherty will be eagerly cheered on by local supporters in the Rally2 category, especially after he won the previous round at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. He is part of the BAS World KTM Racing Team, which is bringing Nathan Rafferty, Filip Grot, Libor Pletka, and Konrad Dabrowski to compete in the South African event. With no less than 23 riders racing in the Rally2 class at the South African Safari Rally, there will be fierce competition for the podium positions. Five riders have been confirmed for the Malle Moto class. They compete in the whole race and must complete their own maintenance on the motorcycles throughout the event, making it an extreme test of man and machine. Three riders from France are Benjamin Pousset, Florian Banchilon, and Matthieu Jauffraud. Jatin Jain, from India, joins the action, along with South African-based Belgian rider Xavier Gregoire. In the Quad category, Abu Dhabi, Desert Challenge winner Antanas Kanopkinas leads the charge on his CFMOTO Thunder Racing machine. He will be joined by the previous round's other podium finishers, teammate Gaetan Martinez and Marek Loj, on a Yamaha Raptor 700. South African Carien Teessen is the fourth contender on another Yamaha Raptor 700. The route The South African Safari Rally offers a diverse and demanding route specifically designed to showcase the natural beauty and technical challenges of Southern Africa. All stages begin and end at Sun City, except for the Marathon Stage, which includes an overnight trip to a remote bivouac near Stella. Here, competitors must service their own vehicles – without outside support. Prologue (19 May): A 9 km blast just outside Sun City sets the stage, combining tight bush trails with fast gravel Stage 1 (20 May): Loops west toward Lichtenburg, blending sand tracks and open farm roads (262 km special) Stage 2 (21 May): Heads into Barberspan's savannah and off-piste terrain (352 km), ending at the marathon bivouac Stage 3 (22 May): Loops back from Stella, with long, fast sections and tricky navigation (253 km) Stage 4 (23 May): A punishing 224 km route into Skilpadshek, featuring rocky mountain sections and technical bushveld Stage 5 (24 May): A short, sharp 118 km loop through red dust and farmland returns the rally to Sun City for the finish The climate in May is cool and dry, with daytime highs around 25°C and early morning temperatures as low as 5°C —ideal for high-performance engines but challenging for tired riders at the marathon bivouac. A rally for the continent As the W2RC heads into its third round, the South African Safari Rally stands not only as a competitive milestone but as a celebration of African rally-raid history and hospitality. From technical scrutineering to the prize-giving at Sun City, every detail has been designed to deliver a world-class experience. More than just a race, this is Africa's invitation to the world—to feel the dust, hear the roar, and witness the rally-raid's global elite take on the continent's toughest terrain.
Top Gear
07-05-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Here's your first look at the V8 Defender Octa that'll take on the Dakar
Plus, confirmation that 14-time Dakar winner Stephane Peterhansel will helm the works team Land Rover is chucking a Defender Octa into the 'stock' category of the World Rally Raid Championship next January, and the first images of the prototype - christened the 'Dakar D7X-R' - have just dropped. Sporting a fresh camo livery teeming with white stickers, the backdrop for these initial tests is the Moroccan section of the Sahara Desert - chosen to 'mirror' the sort of extreme heat and dusty conditions the D7X-R will face in less than eight months. And an excuse for some of the engineers to kick up a plume or two, probably.
