Here we go again for a ride. The 47th edition of the Dakar starts on Friday January 3 from Bisha. For the sixth consecutive year, the famous rally-raid is taking place in Saudi Arabia until January 17. Over two weeks, the 340 entrants will cover 7,700 kilometers, including 5,100 specials, with a big novelty: a different route for motorcycles and cars during five of the 13 timed courses on the program.
Loeb avenging, Sainz on track to defend his title
What if it was finally the good year for Sébastien Loeb (Dacia)? On the podium five times (2017, 2019, 2022, 2023 and 2024) without ever winning, the Alsatian is once again among the headliners of this 47th edition of the Dakar, marked by the absence of Stéphane Peterhansel, eight victories in the car category . His co-driver from last year, Edouard Boulanger, will be there, alongside another favorite, the Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah (Dacia), five victories on the clock. A Spaniard could also join the party: Carlos Sainz (Ford), winner of the 2024 edition at the wheel of an Audi.
On a motorcycle, Ricky Brabec (Honda) will be on track to defend his title. On his path, the same rivals as last year will stand: the Benavides brothers (Husqvarna and KTM)Ross Branch (Hero) and Pablo Quintanilla (Honda). Third in the previous edition, Frenchman Adrien Van Beveren (Honda) will also have his card to play.
A demanding course from the first days
7,700 km including 5,100 km of special stages in 12 stages and a prologue. This is what awaits the 340 competitors in this sixth edition of the Dakar in Saudi Arabia. Departing from Bicha, in the southwest of the country, the pilots will quickly get to the heart of the matter. From stage 2, the entrants will face the “48 hours clock”. Introduced in 2024, this giant step (950 km compared to 540 km in 2024) over two days requires pilots to turn off their engines at nightfall in minimalist rest areas without assistance.
After a transition stage, the competitors will then have to re-mobilize to lose as little time as possible on the fourth and fifth stages which follow one another without connection, with an arrival and departure the next day at the same bivouac. A double stage called a “marathon” of more than 800 kilometers which will take them to Hail, location of the only day of rest (January 10).
At the conclusion of this 47th edition, the pilots will have to cross the Empty Quarter, an expanse of dunes, towards Shubaytah. A final stage marked by a group start, as at the time of the arrival in Dakar, on Lake Rose.
Between motorcycles and cars, two different routes for greater safety and difficulty
This is the main novelty of the Dakar version 2025. Five stages including the “48 hours flat”or 45% of the timed sectors, will be drawn on different routes for cars and motorcycles. “By reducing overtaking situations, safety conditions are improved”justified the race director, David Castera, during the presentation of the course in November.
For car co-drivers, who often take advantage of the tracks left by two wheels, this will also complicate navigation. In 2024, on the only stage which offered a similar format, the experienced five-time winner of the rally-raid Nasser Al-Attiyah, who set off as a scout, lost more than twenty minutes, before encountering mechanical problems.
A new program to develop rallying in Saudi Arabia
For the first time, the Dakar organization is also setting up the “Saudi Next Gen” operation, in parallel with the race. Its objective: to serve as a springboard for a new generation of previously selected Saudi pilots. Five in number, they will benefit from a tailor-made program for five days, made up of training sessions and full-scale tests on three stages of the race. The winner of this mini-championship will earn his place on the Morocco Rally in October 2025 then on the Dakar 2026.
