December and January may mark the off-season for many motorsports, however, in Saudi Arabia, a rumble of engines signals the annual arrival of one of the world's most gruelling motorsport events – the Dakar Rally!
Dubbed by many to be the toughest motor race in the world, the Dakar Rally makes and breaks many of the most ardent drivers. When you look at the terrain and conditions they drive through, it is easy to see why it is revered by so many.
Motorbikes, specially built buggies, and trucks represent some of the categories on display as they tackle routes over gigantic dunes, rocks and mud, where a slight diversion can mean the difference between success and failure in the vast Saudi Arabian wilderness.
So, what's in store for this year's Dakar? Belt up as we drift you through this year's course as well as the potential runners and riders.
2024 will be Dakar's fifth year exclusively in Saudi Arabia and will kick off on 5th January in the city of AlUla. The ancient, thousand-year-old oasis city is the perfect backdrop for all teams to kick off their adventures before they drop down to the Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia, looping back up north to finish in Yanbu on the shores of the Red Sea.
The race will cover 15 days, concluding on 19th January, with drivers allowed a respite on the 13th. During the 12 stages, a total of 7,974 km is covered. As you can imagine, this difficult course not only tests the vehicles, but also the drivers, who tend to try and get five minutes of sleep here and there, and you'll generally find them sleep-deprived by the time they reach the halfway point.
To spice things up just that little bit more, the organisers have also introduced a new stage this year called the 48H Chrono Stage. During this phase, all drivers will be required to stop at the next designated spot at 4 pm and will not be allowed to start their engines until 7am. Sounds good right? Wrong, the drivers will be completely alone at this moment and are not allowed to communicate with engineers or canteen members. They are permitted to help other competitors which adds to the whole comradery element of the event.
Nasser al-Attiyah is back again and is hoping to make it three wins on the bounce in the cars category. Following last year's victory, al-Attiyah decided to switch from Toyota to join Prodrive and drive the Hunter T1+. He has openly said that one of his goals is to get as many race wins in as many different cars as possible and if he manages to secure victory, not only will it be the Banbury-based manufacturer's first, but it will also be al-Attiyah's fourth in a different car.
Stéphane Peterhansel, who has an incredible 14 victories at Dakar, in both the car and bike category, will be hoping his Audi RS Q e-Tron will push him to a 15th win, in what will be Audi's final year at Dakar, having only been present for the two previous races.
Joining in one of the other Audis will be Carlos Sainz Snr, who will look to roll back the years and secure his first win since 2020.
While we're on the topic of Audi and their RS Q e-Tron, much has been made of how the German manufacturer would fare in the desert. After its initial splash back in 2021, with its unique car which showcased what the future of Dakar could look like due to it combining both an electric drivetrain with a high voltage battery and energy converter, 2022 was a terrible year for it.
Despite Carlos Sainz Snr winning the first stage, the team struggled throughout with Sainz being forced to retire, and their highest final car was back in 14th place. Can they make some noise in their final year before the manufacturer's sports car engineers shift all their attention to Formula 1 in 2026?
Some people have touted MINI's X-Raid cars to have a good run in 2024. They have won five of the last ten Dakar's, with their last victory in 2021.
However, despite losing al-Attiyah, Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) remains one of the favourites for the car trophy category with its updated GR DKR Hilux EVO T1U being featured by five different crews, with the experienced Giniel de Villiers hoping to guide the team to its third victory on the bounce, and his first since 2009.
What we're sure of though, is that this year's race is going to be another cracker!
If you're interested in seeing how you could potentially fare out on the rally track, check out our dedicated Rally Driving Experiences page today on the Trackdays website, to browse and book all available packages from dates on our regularly updated Rally Driving Calendar or through purchase of one of our open Gift Vouchers.
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