Motorsport spectacle

Only three riders! KTM goes into the Dakar slimmed down

Kevin Benavides will be competing for KTM.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

An uncertain year 2025 starts for KTM's motorsport department on Friday with the 47th Dakar Rally. Although the Upper Austrian motorcycle manufacturer will only be represented in a slimmed-down form and with three riders at the enduro spectacle in Saudi Arabia, which runs until January 17th, the potential for victory is still there in the absence of Matthias Walkner, who was involved in a serious accident around a year ago. "We have a really strong team," said team manager Andreas Hölzl.

The GasGas and Husqvarna brands, which belong to the group, are no longer participating as teams this time, but the KTM works team is tackling the 7,805 km with 5,209 kilometers of classifieds. The line-up is certainly impressive. It includes Argentinian two-time winner (2021, 2023) Kevin Benavides, his brother Luciano, who also has Dakar experience, and Australian Daniel Sanders, who is competing for the fifth time and recently impressed with victory at the Morocco Rally.

From 2001 to 2019, the Dakar was firmly in KTM hands in the motorcycle category, with Walkner winning for the first time in 2018. After a "horror year" and a slow recovery, the man from Salzburg is currently only dreaming of a return to the legendary motorcycle race. Kevin Benavides was not quite as badly hit in a training crash last May. He also had a difficult road back, but it remains to be seen whether the 35-year-old's fitness will be good enough for the ordeal. "Kevin is a fighter," emphasized Hölzl.

Brabec and Sainz hope to defend their titles
The defending champion is Ricky Brabec from the USA, who is aiming for a third triumph after his successes in 2020 and 2024, something that only six motorcyclists have managed to do so far. "Achieving a first Dakar win or even a podium finish is not easy, you could say you were lucky. Getting a second one is not easy. So it's definitely not going to be easy to get the third, especially after winning in 2024. Everyone wants to beat you. It would be really great to confirm what I did in 2024," explained the Honda rider, who survived a crash in Morocco without serious injury. "The only downside is that it affected my training," said Brabec.

In the cars, Carlos Sainz has his sights set on defending the title and his fifth triumph - both with a different brand. In 2024, the two-time World Rally Champion became the oldest Dakar winner of all time at the age of 61 in an Audi; twelve months later, the father of Formula 1 driver Carlos Jr. will try his hand in a Ford. The US company has not only recruited Sainz for the hunt for the first triumph, but has also signed up another experienced driver, Nani Roma, who has already won the Dakar both on a motorcycle and in a car.

Carlos Sainz

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Dacia is also tackling the sixth edition on the Arabian Peninsula with great ambitions. Five-time Dakar winner Nasser Al-Attiyah won the Morocco Rally on his debut in a Dacia, while nine-time world champion Sebastien Loeb is finally aiming for a win after three second and two third places. Toyota has an interesting pairing at the start. The two two-time motorcycle winners Toby Price and Sam Sunderland will sit together in the Hilux Overdrive, Price at the wheel and Sunderland as co-driver.