The 2025 Rally Dakar, one of the first sporting events of the season, is now right behind the corner: it will take place from January 3 to 17, 2025. For the sixth time, the Dakar Rally, traditionally between Paris and Dakar, capital of Senegal, will be held in Saudi Arabia for security reasons.
The route was announced earlier this year, and it will consist of 12 stages in 14 days of racing through the dunes of the desert Empty Quarter, from Bisha to Shubaytah.
It will start strong, with the second stage being a 48 hour chrono: a long stage spanning 971 km, forcing drivers to sleep in bivouacs in the middle of the desert. According to the Dakar, it was "a big hit with racers and viewers alike, as well as amping up the drama and sowing chaos among the title contenders".
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In total, it will be 7,759 km for cars and 7,706 km for motorcycles. The Rally Dakar is the biggest rally-raid in the world, but only the first stop of the World Rally-Raid Championship, a season created by FIA and FIM in 2022, with five stops next year: Abu Dhabi in February, South Africa in Mau, Portugal in September and Morocco in October.