Dakar

Competitors in the 2023 Dakar Rally’s FIM categories have received their numbers. The 144 riders include 27 factory pros, 73 for other bikes, 17 on quads, and 27 in the Malle Moto class.

Ottavio Missoni Jr., whose family runs the Italian fashion brand Missoni, will compete in the Dakar Rally for the first time in 2023 on a bike.

A Porsche 953, a variant of the 911, won the 1984 Paris–Dakar Rally, hence why the company has designed a 911 for off-roading that will be revealed at the Los Angeles Auto Show on 16 November.

Sébastien Loeb Racing will enter the 2023 Dakar Rally as part of a new partnership with Polaris, where they will field an SSV for 2016 FIM Bajas World Cup rider Xavier de Soultrait. It will be Soultrait’s first time competing at Dakar on four wheels.

Due to supply chain issues, DirtFish reported the Ford Ranger T1+ developed by M-Sport and Neil Woolridge Motorsport will not race the 2023 Dakar Rally. However, work on the truck continues.

2011 Superbike World Champion Carlos Checa and bike star-turned-Extreme E racer Laia Sanz will team up with Óscar Fuertes at Astara Team for the 2023 Dakar Rally.

Belarusian citizen Dmitriy Mazanov was banned from running the Baja Portalegre 500 due to the Russo-Ukrainian War, though he stresses he’s lived in Ukraine and doesn’t support Lukashenko’s policies.

17-year-old Eryk Goczał passed his driving exams and received his driving and competition licences, opening the door for a Dakar Rally entry alongside Oriol Mena and father Marek.

David Pearson received his acceptance letter to the 2023 Dakar Rally in July, but he and his American Rally Originals team also received some important financial support by winning the Road to Dakar invitation via his Sonora Rally outing.

Despite being involved with the Dakar Rally since 2003, Antanas Juknevičius will skip the 2023 race due to a lack of competitive and affordable T1+ cars on the market.

Sodicars will partner with students from Nebrija University in Madrid to redesign Sodicars’ BV2 car for use by Manolo and Mónica Plaza at the Dakar Rally.

Portuguese rider Armindo Neves died after suffering injuries from a fall during the second stage of the Africa Eco Race. He is the first fatality in Eco Race history.

After being rejected for the 2023 Dakar Rally due to a lack of experience, Ruben Saldaña Goñi changed organisers’ minds with his Rallye du Maroc performance and will make his début.

Refusing to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Sergei Kariakin has directly written to FIA President Mohammad Ben Sulayem asking him to kill the policy to do so in order to run the Dakar Rally.