Great off-road talents meet from February 26 to March 3 at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (ADDC), the second valid event for World Rally-Raids (W2RC), FIA and FIM, after the Dakar rally. More than a month after the end of the Dakar, the participants went down to work again in the Empty Quarter desert, this time on the edge of Abu Dhabi.
The Desert Challenge entry list has grown by nearly 35% since last year as established talent was once again tempted and newcomers encouraged to compete in what is now the second round of the Desert Challenge Championship. World of Rally Raid (W2RC).
in cars Defending W2RC champion Nasser Al-Attiyah arrives at the Desert Challenge under pressure, two points behind Sébastien Loeb in the standings (87 points to 85). The top three is completed by Guerlain Chicherit, winner of two stages in the Dakar Rally, with 49 points. He They will also compete against 2022 FIA World Cup Baja Cross-Country winner Yazeed Al-Rajhi at the Al Dhafra dunes for Desert Challenge honours.
on motorcycles, the best of the FIM championship will face off in the Empty Quarter. Sam Sunderland, chasing his fourth ADDC victory, and Ricky Brabec, first and second in the 2022 edition, came to the event with no points in their backpack. A new rivalry was presented between Honda and KTM, a battle in which the champion of the Dakar and therefore leader of the classification (by 8 points to Toby Price who participated) crashed, Kevin Benavides breaking his right leg on the femur in the shakedown.
In the T3 category of light prototypes, Cristina Gutiérrez (Red Bull Can-Am Factory Team) left the Dakar fifth overall in the W2RC World Championship with 52 points. Austin Jones leads with 83 points after his Dakar victory, ahead of Seth Quintero, with 77, Guthrie, with 28 and ‘Chaleco’ López, with 55, just three more than Cristina.
In T4, light vehicles came from the series, the youngest winner in Dakar history, Pole Eryk Goczal, together with Catalan co-driver Oriol Mena, leads the W2RC World Championship overall with 86 points, ahead of Baciuska and his Catalan ‘kopi’ which is Oriol Vidal (79 points) . Pau Navarro, an 18-year-old rider of the FN SpeedTeam, is 7th with 28 points.
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.
