Dakar 2024: a 5,000 kilometer loop, a 48-hour special… Discover the route for the next edition

For the next edition of the Dakar, the caravan will be able to take advantage of the New Year. The departure of the famous rally raid is set for January 5 from Alula, for an arrival on January 19 in Yanbu, on the shores of the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia. . On the program, unveiled on Saturday June 3, 2023 by the organizer Amaury Sport Organisation, a round trip loop of 5,000 kilometers from east to west, divided into 12 stages, including one that is already causing a lot of talk…

A 48-hour special!

The Empty Quarter provides a playground for experimentation. This vast Saudi desert inaugurates a new racing format: the 48 hour race! An unprecedented marathon stage, with a stop schedule imposed on all competitors. At 4 p.m., end of the game for everyone, head for one of the eight (!) bivouacs spread over the course, to better start from the same place the next day at 7 a.m.

With, to complicate matters, an additional difficulty: to each his own way! Cars and trucks on one side, motorcycles and quads on the other. The promise of a great part of navigation. David Castera, the director of the Dakar, evokes “60% new portions, interspersed with large portions of dunes.” For the most impatient, registrations are already open.

On the Classic side, between an iconic single-seater buggy, the faithful evocations of Porsche 959 and Mercedes 500SLC, the historic line-up should delight the most nostalgic…