Dakar Rally 2022 Preview: Stage set for duel in the Saudi Arabian deserts

Nasser Al Attiyah — The Dakar Rally 2022 promises to be another epic. Image: Red Bull Content Pool

Bengaluru, January 1: All roads lead to the Saudi Arabian deserts as the off-road heavyweights line up for the FIA Dakar Rally 2022 which departs from Hail on January 2 and finishes in Jeddah on January 14.

The 44th edition of the most-demanding off-road races begins with a prologue on Saturday (January 1) and the 12 long Stages will conclude on January 14.

The rest day at Riyadh will be on January 8.

With more than 1,000 people lining up to race nearly 7,500km across Saudi Arabian deserts, the 2022 Dakar Rally promises to be another epic rally-raid adventure over the sand dunes with a host of established global stars and talented young racers out to impress.

The field will try their hardest to complete all 13 stages from Jeddah to Ha'il and Riyadh then back again with a slew of fascinating stories set to play out across the respective vehicle categories.

Organised by Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), it will be the third edition of Dakar in Saudi Arabia.

We know for sure that the race will start on New Year's Day and there will be loads of sand for the huge parade of vehicles to conquer, nevertheless after that remains a mystery for now.

It promises to be a fascinating journey into the unknown and, no matter what, it is going to be epic! Fasten your seat belts! Bring it on!

Special stage

The special stages will start in Hail and end in Jeddah, going through canyons and cliffs in the Neom region, passing by the Red Sea coastline, into stretches of dunes surrounding Riyadh, with a lot more action on sand dunes in the Empty Quarter.

The total distance of the route is nearly 7,500 kms. Only an elite few, who were successful in another qualifier, join the world's best at premier break-or-make event in the cross-country rally world.

Navigation the key

The risks for the most-gruelling off-road races get bigger every year as the talent pool also gets deeper, with organisers ASO out to contain top speeds by keeping the roadbooks tight and tough, meaning navigation is crucial.

With these being delivered digitally, there is no chance to study and prep - it's quick reflex real-time racing.

Star-studded podium

For the records, Stephane Peterhansel is the defending Dakar champion in the cars category. Thirty years after his maiden victory at the Dakar Rally, Peterhansel was on the top step of a star-studded podium again as he won the 2021 edition , beating the challenge of Qatari ace Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah and Spaniard Carlos Sainz.

The man they call Monsieur Dakar first contested the world's most fearsome off-road race in 1988 on a Yamaha motorbike and won six titles on two wheels before switching to cars to reel off another seven desert victories in Africa and South America.

Title contenders

This year, 4-wheel drive cars are allowed to upgrade to wider tyres, a wider chassis and more suspension travel with 2-wheel drive cars (buggies) retaining the ability to deflate/inflate their tyres from the cockpit to maximise efficiency and fuel consumption.

Both of the top teams are racing on new cars - leaving the potential for big shakeups in the leaderboard. Mini has won the last two Dakars, but Toyota's Al Attiyah suffered more than 80 punctures in those two races. Could it make the difference and help him claim his fourth Dakar victory?

On the bikes, keep an eye out for young American Mason Klein who has proven to be a good navigator and consistently fast finisher as well as his teammate Bradley Cox, whose father is Dakar legend Alfie Cox.