This December 31, the Dakar 2023 begins, with a more difficult route and a lot of sand in the second week, in ‘Empty Quarter’ (The room is empty). In total, 8,549 kilometers, 4,706 timed, from the west of the country (Red Sea), to the east, on the coast of the Persian Gulf. This is the Dakar 2023 stage by stage and these are the provisional schedules:
12/31: Prologue
SEA CAMP-SEA CAMP: 11 kilometers of special
It will be 11 kilometers along the coast of the Red Sea. The fastest gets to choose the starting position for stage 1, so it’s important to avoid being affected by the dust. The first ten cars and the first fifteen motorcycles will be able to choose a position in the reverse order of their classification and choose their starting positions for stage 1.
Provisional departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
6:15 am First motorcycle start / 8:00 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
6.28h arrival of the first motorcycle /
10.06 am when the first car arrives
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1/1: Stage 1
SEA CAMP-SEA CAMP: Link of 234 km – Special of 367 km
Simple navigation. A good warm-up on all types of terrain. It is a loop with sections of gravel-like rocks and sandy tracks. At the end of the special, the competitors will find the first sands, to warm up their engines. This will not be a complicated stage.
Provisional departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:30 am First motorcycle start / 8:05 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
10.02 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
11:59 am when the first car arrives
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2/1: Stage 2-KEY
SEA CAMP-ALULA: 158 km link – 430 km special
Cheat day, with a rocky and narrow track. There will be dust, rocks and a high risk of punctures along the route. Differences can be made. Whoever starts too far back, out of position, will suffer. That’s why having a good prologue and a good first episode will be key.
“First, some impressive canyons will be crossed and then, near the finish line, the final stretch will be played between the dunes, with part of the majestic Nabataean temples on the horizon,” said the organization . The Dakar caravan left what would be their home since the Rally preview, the Sea Camp, to head to AlUla.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:30 am First motorcycle start / 8:05 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
10:41 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
12:15 pm when the first car arrives
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3/1: Stage 3
ALULA – HA’IL: Link of 221 km – Special of 447 km
Navigating the tracks between canyons and subsequent open desert areas is complicated. “Probably the fifty best kilometers of the rally”, the test director, David Castera, assured about the start of the special. It also warns of the importance of being precise and unerring in the many clues that can be found between the cannons.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:30 am First motorcycle start / 8:05 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
10:32 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
12:22 pm arrival of the first car
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4/1: Stage 4-KEY
HA’IL – HA’IL: 148 km Link – 425 km Special
Loop stage. In the beginning, the competitors have to face huge sand dunes. The director of the Dakar, David Castera, warned that “the first 100 km will not be easy”. All types of terrain, with navigation, sandy tracks, rocks and fast finishes.
“The great desert connoisseurs from all over the world have undoubtedly mastered all kinds of dunes, but they rarely have to face the dunes that the competitors have to climb in the first hundred kilometers of the special” , warned the organization. On the way back to Ha’il, navigation will be complicated and competitors will have to be careful not to lose a minute following the ‘roadbook’ indications.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:30 am First motorcycle start / 7:40 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
10.05 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
11:34 am when the first car arrives
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5/1: Stage 5
HA’IL – HA’IL: Link of 270 km – Special of 373 km
First day one hundred percent dunes. Second loop stage to Ha’il, a town close to where the bivouac will be located for two consecutive days.
“It will be played on 100% sand terrain in this second loop around Ha’il, the off-road capital of Saudi Arabia,” the organization said. The stage starts with small sand dunes with camel grass and continues to large open spaces filled with sand dunes. Expect soft sand and that’s where good dune specialists can make a difference.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:25 am First motorcycle start / 7:35 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
9:41 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
11.10 am when the first car arrives
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6/1: Stage 6
HA’IL – AL DUWADIMI: 409 km Link – 465 km Special
The bivouac left Ha’il to head for Al Duwadimi. Very long stage, of a total of more than 800 kilometers between links (409) and special (465 km). Longest Dakar stage. The start will be fast tracks and big plateaus. It will end in the sand dunes in the last third of the special.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:50 am First motorcycle start / 7:55 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
11.18 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
1:03 pm when the first car arrives
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7/1: Stage 7-KEY
AL DUWADIMI – AL DUWADIMI: 167 km Liaison – 472 km Special
It will be the longest special, with 475 timed km. It will have a sandy start, with dune plateaus and lots of rocks at the end. Be careful at this stage. “It can make a difference,” Castera warns.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5.10 am First motorcycle start / 7.40 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
10:36 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
12:28 pm arrival of the first vehicle
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8/1: Stage 8
AL DUWADIMI – RIYADH: 315 km Link – 398 km Special
Stage before the rest day with almost 400 km special. The first will take competitors through beautiful valleys in the middle of the mountains before reaching a wide open desert. The finish, towards Riyadh, will have rough and tricky terrain and fast tracks. Beware!
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:00 am Motorcycle first start / 7:25 am Car first start
Estimated Arrival Time:
9:22 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
11:29 am when the first car arrives
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9/1: Rest day in Riyadh
10/1: Stage 9
RIAD – HARAD: Link of 328 km – Special of 358 km
Rocky tracks between rivers to reach the ‘Empty Quarter’. It shouldn’t be a difficult stage, although it will require “a lot of concentration in the wadis and canyons in the first half of the stage.” The organization clearly warns: “be careful not to go off track… and there are navigation errors”. Before reaching the bivouac, the competitors will pass “a beautiful massif of dunes on the way to Haradh.”
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5.00 am First motorcycle start / 7.05 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
8:57 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
10:44 am first car arrives
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11/1: Stage 10:
HARADH – SHAYBAH: Link of 509 km – Special of 113 km
Short special, 113 km time, but with a lot of sand to reach the middle of the ‘Empty Quarter’. Dakar is entering uncharted territory. Start with the hardest.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
7.50 am First motorcycle start / 9.55 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
9:27 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
11.32 am when the first car arrives
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12/1: Stage 11 – KEY
SHAYBAH > EMPTY QUARTER MARATHON: 153 km Liaison – 275 km Special
First part of the Marathon Stage (no help at the end of the stage and drivers must fix their cars without the help of their team). “It will be an exhausting day,” the organization warned. 270 km of dune cords and more dunes. “The average speed will drop significantly,” Castera said. Many may return at night.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
4:35 am First motorcycle start / 6:40 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
8:50 am when the first motorcycle arrives /
10:37 am when the first car arrives
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13/1: Stage 12-KEY
EMPTY QUARTER MARATHON – SHAYBAH: 191 km Liaison – 183 km Special
Second part of the marathon stage, with lots of sand. Return to the bivouac. Another day to risk those who have to do it in the general’s view. Differences can be made in the dunes before the penultimate stage.
“It will be shorter, but the menu will be the same, with the same profile as the previous stage: full of sands. The day before there will be great descents of sand that for this stage 12 cannot be climbed and that’s why things are going to change a bit,” assured David Castera.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
4:50 am First motorcycle start / 6:55 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
7:27 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
9:32 am when the first car arrives
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14/1: Stage 13
SHAYBAH – AL-HOFUF: Link of 520 km – Special of 154 km
Last day full of dune cords. The final risk and attack option facing the general. Competitors will leave the ‘Empty Quarter’ after many days of sand and incredible scenery. “The reduced format of the special does not allow us to have high hopes, but the physical and mechanical resistance can still make a difference”, comments the organization. The one you have to risk, must do it to the maximum to recover the ground.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
4:35 am First motorcycle start / 6:35 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
6:47 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
8:47 am first car arrives
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15/1: Stage 14-FINAL
AL-HOFUF – DAMMAM: Link of 280 km – Special of 136 km
Simple stage, through the Persian Gulf, ending at the sea, remembering the endings at the Pink Lake. This should not be a stage for surprises, although leaders need to be careful not to make last-minute mistakes.
Departure time (Spanish peninsular time):
5:50 am First motorcycle start / 8:02 am First car start
Estimated Arrival Time:
7.11 am arrival of the first motorcycle /
9:16am the first car arrives
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Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
