JEDDAH (Saudi Arabia): The Dakar Rally, the first major motorsport event of 2021, is ready to race in spite of the many challenges facing organisers and competitors as they prepare to compete in the two-week epic in Saudi Arabia.
All participants in the grueling event head into the dunes and remote deserts of Saudi Arabia, which starts in Jeddah on Sunday and ends in the Red Sea port.
Qatar’s Nasser Al Attiyah will hope to forget the last edition of the world-famous rally held in Saudi Arabia.
Having won three titles, the 50-year-old finished runner-up behind Spaniard Carlos Sainz by a little over six minutes in his Toyota, numbered 300, in the last edition held in Saudi Arabia.
Staged in Africa between 1979 and 2007, the world’s most famous rally shifted to the mountainous terrain of South America between 2009 and 2019.
“Last year’s Dakar in Saudi Arabia was a real disappointment. It was great to be in a new region with incredible scenery and above all we were full of confidence, but as soon as the rally started, we started getting punctures. The tyres we had in South America were not suitable for Saudi Arabia. So not winning was a big disappointment but we still finished second,” Nasser, winner told Dakar Rally website.
With international travel all but at a standstill, competitors, teams and officials gathered at various points before being chartered into Jeddah and had to quarantine for COVID-19 after arriving on charter flights.
On Sunday, the first stage of the world’s most famous desert rally will start in Jeddah as the competitors tackle the 622 km route of tracks and valleys that lead to Bisha.
Saudi Arabia had held the 42nd edition of the race, and the country’s first, in January of last year, and for veteran and new competitors, the Dakar Rally remains one of motorsports most coveted competitions.
Whether in the motorcycle, lightweight vehicles, trucks or car categories, the participants have been raring to go since arriving in Jeddah, and after Saturday’s Prologue, will finally tackle the Kingdom’s desert landscape.
From Monday, the next 11 stages will set out a punishing schedule interrupted by only one day of rest. Day 2 will take place on the dunes between Bisha and Wadi Ad-Dawasir, while the action on Day 3 will continue in the Empty Quarter of Wadi Ad-Dawasir.
