DAVID WALSH WINS 2023 FINKE DESERT RACE

David Walsh and KTM were once again victors at the Tatts Finke Desert Race, with the 33-year-old from Alice Springs taking his fourth consecutive King of the Desert crown at the annual off-road event.

Walsh, riding for HMG Motorsport KTM, was one of 429 entrants across nine classes in the motorcycle category this year. Other riders in the same class as Walsh (Class 2 for 451cc+ four-stroke machines) included Callum Norton, Brodie Waters, Ivan Long and last year’s runner-up, Jacob Smith.

Entrants across all classes would be racing through the red dirt, sand and spinifex between Alice Springs and Finke (Apatula) that had been impacted by recent rain, although the race weekend remained dry.

The 10 June Prologue that would determine the starting order saw Smith clock the fastest time over the 8.3km course, followed by Norton, Korey McMahon and Walsh. Long was next fastest, then Waters, followed by David Walsh’s cousin Liam, who was making his Finke debut. Completing the top ten in the Prologue were Connor Adams, Sam Handley and Finke veteran (and four-time winner) Ben Grabham, who was also managing the KTM ‘VIP Race Experience’ programme providing rental bikes for competitors.

Day 1, on 11 June, saw Walsh charge ahead on the 226km run from Alice Springs to Finke, with his time of 1h46m25.8s being a comfortable two and a half minutes ahead of STE Racing Team’s Norton. Long was third into Finke, less than a minute behind Norton, followed by Liam Walsh, Smith, McMahon, Corey Hammond, Grabham and Waters, with Adams completing the top ten.

Tamara Grey was the top-placed Women’s finisher on Day 1, ahead of Taylah Maurice and Alexandra Long.

Of the 429 starters, an impressive 404 completed the opening day, although many riders experienced crashes and mishaps along the way, including Norton.

With his healthy lead, Walsh could take a more tactical approach on Day 2’s 226km return leg to Alice Springs. This included being more cautious with the ruts that had built up over Day 1. While Norton was fastest on Day 2, he was only able to shave 40 seconds off Walsh’s Day 1 lead, meaning the Alice Springs local won by a comfortable 1m56s overall, with a combined time of 3h35m48.9s.

Long completed the podium, ahead of McMahon and Liam Walsh, while Grabham showed he’s still fast in the dirt with ninth place overall.

Walsh’s 2023 Finke victory puts him in elite company alongside Grabham, Toby Price, Stephen Greenfield and Randall Gregory, all of whom have won the motorcycle division four times or more. Price remains the most successful of all time with six wins on a bike and took his third win in the car category this year.

“I’m super-proud to make it four wins in a row, and I’m glad to be home safe,” Walsh said. “It was a pretty rough track home and it was good to navigate it and make it back in one piece.

“To get on top of the podium again, it feels great, and it’s what we try to do every year. I really pinned it on the straights and took my time in the rough stuff – I knew the boys would be coming for me, but I knew I had the speed and a gap, so [Day 2] was just about maintaining that.”

Walsh’s 2023 win came in his first attempt at the Iron Man Double (competing in both car and bike categories), but his four-wheel campaign ended with a DNF on Day 2.

Norton was rapt with second, his best-ever Finke result: “Finishing second is massive, and to share the podium with David and Ivan was unreal. I knew Walshy would be hard to catch – he’s the man out here and I’m happy to finish second to him.”

Maurice impressed in her Finke debut, winning the Women’s division after setting the fastest time on Day 2.

As in past years, KTM dominated the results at this year’s Finke, with seven of the top ten finishers being on the orange bikes or related Husqvarna/GasGas machines. The best non-KTM Group finisher was Ryan Cossens on a Sherco 500 SEF-R, who placed 19th overall.