2022 Dakar route released
Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) have released initial details of the Dakar Rally route for 2022, which goes through some familiar towns and cities in Saudi Arabia, but is claimed to be 80 per cent different from this year’s route.
The 2021 Dakar started on the Red Sea coast at Jeddah, then ventured inland, taking in Riyadh, Ha’il and Sakaka before running back down the Red Sea coast to finish at Jeddah, avoiding the Eastern Provinces and that area’s ‘Empty Quarter’ entirely.
For its third running in Saudi Arabia, the 2022 Dakar route will spend almost the entire first week in the Eastern Province. That means lots and lots of sand, with a byproduct being that navigation will be more important than ever before.
From the Empty Quarter, the route heads to Riyadh, the Saudi capital, for the rest day, then south and west before finishing at Jeddah.
Returning to the Empty Quarter that was last visited in 2019 holds a lot of appeal for Dakar’s most successful female entrant, Laia Sanz: “I love the idea of more sand. A Dakar with more dunes and new stages is just what we’ve been waiting for. Saudi Arabia is a huge country with some really beautiful landscapes that we can continue to explore.”
Red Bull KTM’s Sam Sunderland, who finished third this year, was just as enthusiastic: “I can’t wait for the Dakar 2022. Everyone is starting to get used to Saudi Arabia, but with even more sand dunes, I’ll be feeling a little more at home. We also know a bit more about what to expect in terms of navigation; we know now that it’s good to use the electronic roadbook. This is all a huge motivation.”
Full stage-by-stage details won’t be released until November, but the 2022 Dakar route will include two loops and two marathons (where competitors must service and repair their own vehicles each evening), which ASO says will be run “the old-fashioned way”.
Following scrutineering in Ha’il on 31 December and 1 January, then the prologue on 1 January, the 2022 Dakar will commence on 2 January in Ha’il, with the rest day on 8 January in Riyadh and the finish on 14 January in Jeddah.
2022 Changes
Riders like Sunderland, this year’s winner, Kevin Benavides (who moved from Honda to KTM in April), Toby Price, Ricky Brabec and others that are considered ‘elite’ will use a digital roadbook in 2022, instead of the traditional paper version. Adapted from the version used in the other categories, adoption of this “electronic roadbook” for the elite motorcycle entries is part of the Dakar’s aim to go greener and reduce waste, with all categories to use electronic roadbooks in 2023.
Another change for 2022 will be modification of the airbag vests that became mandatory for all motorcycle and quad entrants this year. ASO say they are working with the FIM and manufacturers to make the vests more effective and comfortable.
