Dakar Rally 2022

Hi, everyone

It’s not long now until the Dakar Rally is underway and after other rallies that haven’t quite gone to plan this year, it’s got to be exciting for the riders and adventure bike fans.

What is the Dakar Rally?

Since it came to be in 1978, the rally is a test of endurance for participating riders. It has been held in various places across the world. It even used to start in one country and end in another such as when it used to begin in France and end in Saudi Arabia. But since 2020 the Dakar Rally has been held exclusively in Saudi Arabia.

This year the rally runs from January 1st to January 14th, taking on one leg of the journey a day [except for a rest day in the middle] for a total of around 2500 miles of challenging riding.

Key Dakar 2022 Facts

• With close to 300 entrants covering 7,500km.
• 44th edition of the race.
• Dakar will pay its third visit to Saudi Arabia.
• Lot more sand this year with 3 stages exclusively in the dunes.
• 2022 edition will mark the starting point of the plan to host a field of cars powered solely by alternative energies by 2030.
• All motorbikes in the Dakar have their engine capacity limited to 450 cc. Their maximum engine capacity is 750 cc for two-wheel drive machines and 900 cc for four-wheel drives.
• The 2021 KTM 450 Rally Replica will cost you a hefty ?25,900 in Europe, equating to nearly US$30k before shipping. For that, you get a big 450cc single, with a SOHC head “constructed from premium materials,” an overhead airbox, Keihin engine management system and a tasty Akrapovic exhaust.
• No one has won the Dakar Rally more times than St?phane Peterhansel. Taken 13 victories in total, and six of those came in the motorcycle class.

Here at the Motorcycle Parts Store, we have our own local Adventure riders who we partner with. Kai and Mark are the Cheshire Adventure riders, check out a blog we wrote about the pair for more info. Check out their pages and videos, they are very experienced and knowledgeable and put out a lot of great content.

If you’re an adventure rider yourself, at MPS we offer some great service kits for adventure bikes such as the Honda Africa Twin service kit or the Suzuki V-Strom service kit. If you have an adventure bike and don’t see the kit you need, get in touch with us and we’ll put a kit together at our best price for you.