Dakar Rally Daily

The Marathon. Today's stage 7 of the 2021 Dakar Rally kicks off this year's marathon stages, two back-to-back stages without mechanical support from teams, techs, or service trucks. Riders do their own bike maintenance and can only work on their bikes in the paddock area one time, once they leave their ride, they are done working on the bike until the clock starts tomorrow. American Ricky Brabec g...

The only thing restful about today is that the racers don't put on their gear and compete on the motorcycle.  The entire pit scene is a buzz at Dakar rest days. Mechanics strip bikes to their frames and riders are busy doing interviews, sorting their gear, finding a quiet spot to zone out, and basically being bothered constantly.  This year, the rest day hits right at the mid-point of the rally. S...

It's time to rest. Dakar competitors are the hardiest of all. Six stages in of brutal racing at high speeds has taken its toll on even the top racers at this year's event. You can hear it in their voices - they are looking forward to a break.  In today's episode, we cover a shortened stage 6 that, while 100km shorter than originally planned, was just as tough on the racers and it shook up the stan...

This race is proving impossible to plan for. Stage 5 of the 2021 Dakar Rally is the most difficult so far, with nearly ever rider losing time with navigation errors early in the stage and a grueling distance following. The stage took over five hours for the fastest competitors to finish and although it slowed in pace from previous blitzes, average speeds for the top guys was still nearly 55 mph ov...

The pendulum slows. Today's Stage 4 of the 2021 Dakar Rally in Saudia Arabia has signaled the slow down of the massive pendulum swings affecting the top-20 racers in the Elite Motorcycle division. As the race tightens slowly, some racers are making strategic moves to align with the fastest contenders and really begin the race craft. Ricky Brabec on the Monster Energy Honda team seems to be taking...

It's good to be Skyler Howes today. The young American is sitting at the top of the general classification of Elite motorcycle competitors. And, as we've seen all race long, he's been prime for this spot since he's avoided the massive pendulum swings of time gained and lost that the other top contenders are somewhat forced to play in so far.  In today's episode, we chat with the new race leader, o...

We start today's Stage 2 Dakar Rally coverage on a bit of a downer  as Monster Energy Yamaha's Andrew Short was forced to withdraw from the rally shortly after refueling at KM 277 during the special today. But, on the other side of the spectrum, Monster Energy Honda's seemingly bad day yesterday put them into position to make up serious time today, and that's just what they did with Joan Barreda t...

The race is definitely on now! It feels so good to get this race underway and, as Dakar does so well, we're already seeing time gained, lost and race strategy come into play. We discuss all the top racers, including the biggest winners and loser on the day. Featuring call-in interviews from the bivouac from American's Andrew Short (Monster Energy Yamaha) and Skyler Howes (BAS Trucks KTM).  Enjoy t...

You ready to be inspired? Give this conversation with Laia Sanz a listen and you'll be ready to kick start your dreams into overdrive. You see, she just doesn't seem to know how to quit.  Take her Dakar record, for instance. 10/10 consecutive starts/finishes- gnarly. Four of those are in the top 15. And one is in the top 10! And these aren't cakewalks, either. She's battled broken bikes, broken bo...

Join Hosts Jesse Ziegler and Quinn Cody as they review the kickoff to competition and the 2021 Dakar Rally's prologue stage. Today's episode includes commentary on the first day of racing including strategy insight discussions of the top finishers before previewing tomorrow's stage, Stage 01 - the real beginning of the Dakar Rally race.  We have a special guest calling in from the Bivouac, too - A...

Johnny Campbell has been a force in American and Mexican off-road for decades. Setting the standard for Baja competition's elite, Campbell has continued to grow champions with Johnny Campbell Racing as it's pilots take on the biggest races in North America.  With the rise of Honda's interest in Dakar Rally competition, Campbell was called in early to get to work developing the bike, and riders, th...

If you're looking for someone to cheer for this year during the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia, Skyler Howes is your man. The young privateer from Utah made himself  known on the Dakar stage after finishing as the top Privateer overall, and locking down 9th place - an impressive ride, for sure. For 2021, Skyler pulled together another crowdsourced effort to get him to the starting line, this time jum...

Australia's Toby Price was the first from his country to win Dakar when he won the 2016 event in only his second attempt. The way he attacks the Dakar Rally, and any challenge on a bike, really, is impressive to say the least. In fact, after barely learning how to navigate, he finished third in his first-ever attempt in 2015. Since he began, he's only not finished on the podium once in 2017 and th...

Andrew Short has an impressive motorcycle racing resume, the highlights of which include; 16 years as a professional Supercross and Motocross racer - many of which as a factory-level racer on America's top teams, nine professional victories, and 50 (FIFTY!) podium finishes. He turned pro as soon as he could at 17 years of age and dedicated every year since then to mastering the craft of racing on...

Ricky Brabec should need little introduction to American race fans. As the first American to win the notoriously brutal Dakar Rally, Brabec put his Monster Energy Honda Rally bike on the top of the most elusive step in motorcycle sport - an accomplishment that is hard to describe in scale or challenge.  Americans have tried to win this race, and a few have even landed on the overall podium, but th...

Episode 01 Is Here! Welcome to the first episode of Cycle News ' Dakar Rally Daily podcast. Here, we  take you on an epic trip into the iconic Dakar Rally . In this episode, hosts Jesse Ziegler and Quinn Cody break down their plan of attack to provide in-depth Dakar Rally coverage from the people chasing the ultimate racing dream.  2021's Dakar Rally will be the ultimate test. From COVID protocols...