The Dakar Rally Is Coming: What to Know About the 2023 Edition of the Legendary Off-Road Race
While many Americans may have first heard about the Dakar Rally thanks to Porsche’s recent unveil of the 911’s newest off-road trim package, the motoring world knows all about what’s arguably the most grueling off-road race of all time. This iconic endurance challenge began as a mad dash to Senegal’s capital city of Dakar from Paris, France, before security concerns forced the route to move to South America in 2009.
Since 2020, the Dakar Rally has been held in the vast desert expanses of Saudi Arabia, where the 2023 edition’s roughly 5,000-mile contest will run from December 31 through January 15, including a rest day on January 9.
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Entrants at Dakar run the gamut from motorcycles to massive trucks to side-by-sides and quads. There’s even a Classic class that allows vintage Porsches driven by privateers. This year, Red Bull made waves by announcing a new Dakar effort in partnership with Can-Am—a collaboration officially known as the Red Bull Can-Am Factory Team. The partnership brings together five experienced drivers in the T3 and T4 UTV classes. Audi will also return after blitzing the new T1 Ultimate class for low-emissions vehicles last year with the eye-popping RS Q e-tron hybrid-electric race car.
Red Bull’s alliance with Can-Am aims to continue building on the successes that the South Racing team found at Dakar entering Can-Am Maverick X3 side-by-sides in recent years. Team principal Scott Abraham helms both South Racing and the new Red Bull Can-Am Factory Team, leading four proven competitors in the T3 class, including 11-time Dakar stage-winner Seth Quintero, 2022 Dakar T4 Champion AJ Jones, three-time Dakar UTV Champion Francisco “Chaleco” Lopez and Cristina Gutiérrez—the only woman in history to win a Dakar UTV stage. The 2022 World Rally Raid T4 champion, Rokas Baciu?ka, will enter the T4 class as well.
After Dakar, the Red Bull Can-Am Factory Team will continue to compete in the World Rally Raid Series, including key races in North America. It will also provide a career funnel in the form of the Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team that gives young racers the opportunity to transition from local and national events to the international stage.
“We couldn’t be happier with our driver lineup for the 2023 Dakar Rally. I feel like we have a good opportunity to win this race, especially with the Dakar-winning proven platform of the Can-Am Maverick X3,” Abraham said. “The foundation of what we are building here today will help push the next generation of racers to new heights, and South Racing is thrilled to be able to lead this.”
Audi, meanwhile, will return to the Dakar Rally after winning four stages and 14 podiums with three RS Q e-tron vehicles that made their debut in 2022. The futuristic hybrid pairs long-travel off-roading suspension with three electric motor-generator units from Audi’s Formula E car. It will also incorporate a 52 kwh battery—weighing 815 pounds—and a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine sourced from Audi’s proven Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) on-road race car.
The RS Q e-tron weighs 4,600 pounds and produces a maximum of 392 hp due to new rules in place for this year’s race. Audi, however, claims that the racer can still manage a zero-to-60 mph sprint in less than 4.5 seconds on loose surfaces, thanks to the instantaneously available torque made possible by electric motors.
The 2023 Dakar route should push drivers and machines to new limits, with roughly 3,100 miles comprising timed special stages. The rally will begin in Sea Camp, a few hours north of Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea, with a close to seven-mile prologue to determine the next day’s start order. Stage 1 also begins and ends in Sea Camp before the race progresses to more technical terrain requiring navigation through rocks, canyons and, eventually, sand dunes on the way to Riyadh for the rest day. The course then traverses through the famous “Empty Quarter” for four days before turning northward toward the finish in Dammam.
Throughout the 15 days of racing, drivers and co-drivers cannot receive help from their teams during the actual stages without being penalized. Repairs are allowed at night, so engineers and mechanics typically stay up through all hours preparing for the following day. Weather forecasts range from balmy and temperate on the coasts and southern reaches of the Arabian Peninsula to frigid with the potential for snow in the North near Ha’il. Over 900 entrants hope to test their machines and mettle against the competition, the terrain and the weather.
Click here for more preview photos of the 2023 Dakar Rally.
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