Category: Indians Abroad

Ace Indian rider and Dakar class winner, Harith Noah of Kerala, who won the Rally2 class on Stage 4 yesterda, completed the rally and just finished outside the podium in the Rallye du Maroc on the final day.

The Sherco TVS Rally Factory team rider had a difficult Day 1 but recovered with admirable navigation and riding skills in the new sections to push himself to the forefront.

“It was fourth Overall and P1 in Rally2 class on Stage 4. It was almost a perfect day today, after 315 km, but just a few kilometers before the finish, I got lost and lost some time. Fortunately, Lorenzo Santolino, was there too and he found the right way and we rode to the finish together. The full stage was on fresh grounds which I enjoyed. Today was the first day I really felt good on the bike right from the start,” said Harith Noah after Stage 4.

Key points:

• In the cars, Nasser Al Attiyah took his seventh victory on the race. His team-mate Sébastien Loeb took second place today. The two stars hand the Dacia Sandrider a one-two finish for the brand’s first rally-raid outing. Guillaume de Mévius (X-raid Mini JCW) finished on the podium with his new team.
• In the Challenger class, Eryk Goczal (Energylandia Taurus Factory) won ahead of his father Marek with Dania Akeel (BBR) completing the podium. In the SSV class, Yasir Seaidan (MMP) wins the race and the championship. In the truck class, Martin Macik (MM Technology) scored a full house, winning every day of racing! In SSV Open Maroc Telecom, Ali Oubassidi wins for the Africa Rallye Team.
• In the RallyGP class, Daniel Sanders (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) won the race for the first time in his career ahead of Tosha Schareina (Monster Energy Honda) and fellow KTM factory rider Luciano Benavides. Ross Branch (Hero MotoSports) becomes 2024 World Champion.
• In Rally2, Bradley Cox (BAS World KTM Racing) repeated last year’s win and also took the World Cup for the category. In Rally3 Enduro Cup Afriquia, Souleymane Addahri (Africa Rallye Team) won by a landslide. In the quad category, Antanas Kanopkinas (CFMoto Thunder) won by a whisker.

ON TRACK
The final stage, a loop around Mengoub/Bouârfa, comprising of 273 kilometres of special stages finished just outside the bivouac (see Radio bivouac).

In the RallyGP category, Daniel Sanders won after a fierce battle with Tosha Schareina (+11’07’’). Luciano Benavides, back from his femur injury sustained in Argentina last June, took the final podium spot after a very solid performance (+21’03‘’). The two KTM factory riders, who arrived in Marrakech on a machine with a revamped chassis, left the rally having sent a clear message to their rivals for next January: the orange bike is ready to race. For ‘Chucky’, who won at his second attempt at the race, it was a good way of putting his past injuries behind him (see Quotes) and to succeed Toby Price (see Stat of the day).
Winner of stage 1 and sixth overall, Ross Branch was able to let his delight at becoming W2RC world champion explode at the end of the series’ five rounds.

In Rally2, Bradley Cox rode at RallyGP pace all week. The South African repeated last year’s Moroccan title and snatched victory in the Rally2 World Cup after a hard-fought season with Romain Dumontier (Honda Team). The Frenchman discovered a new machine this week. The BAS World KTM Racing team was on top form, with three of its riders finishing on the podium in the category, with young Edgar Canet and Michael Docherty flanking Alfie Cox‘s son. Harith Noah (Sherco TVS Rally Factory), winner of the category on the Dakar, finished just off the podium.

In the Rally3 Enduro Cup Afriquia, Souleymane Addahri produced the masterpiece that ART had been hoping for! Hats off to the Agadir-based rider, who scored a hat-trick for the Africa Rallye Team, the continental rider training programme supported by the Rallye du Maroc’s main partners, which has dominated the category since its inception in 2022.

In the quad category, Antanas Kanopkinas and Kamil Wisniewski (Orlen) battled it out throughout the week, with the Lithuanian coming out on top today.

In the car category, Nasser Al Attiyah debuted his Dacia in the best possible way. The Qatari increased his record of victories on the Rallye du Maroc to seven and while taking his third world championship title (see Quotes).Sébastien Loeb (The Dacia Sandriders) won the day’s stage, having already won the day before, overtaking the Mini of Guillaume de Mévius (see Quotes). The Frenchman finished 5’10’ behind his team-mate. Dacia scores a remarkable one-two finish for their competition debut.
Held up today by a stop-and-go out on the track, the Belgian finally finished third at 13’45’. This week, the man from Namur rediscovered the superb form of last January. His team-mate Guerlain Chicherit, who had been in the running all week, suffered his first blow today. The Frenchman lost out on the fourth place he’d been aiming at. Despite this, the two new Mini crews also proved that they were up to the job on their first outing. It was a similar story for Ford M-Sport. Carlos Sainz, competing in the Experimental category, scored one win, four podiums and a fifth place today. ‘ El Matador ‘ is ready to enter the arena next January (see Quotes).
Toyota took fourth place with Yazeed Al Rajhi (+23’30‘’). The Saudi driver (Overdrive Racing) retains his runner-up spot in the world championship. Seth Quintero (Toyota Gazoo Racing) rounded off the Top 5 (+29’31‘’).

In the Challenger class, the Goczal family made a spectacular return to competition. Between them, the Polish trio won every day  since Marrakech. At the finish, Eryk was ahead of his father Marek (+9’51‘’). Michal is not on the podium following his DNF yesterday. Dania Akeel took third place in the race, reflecting her rise to prominence over the season.

In SSV, the new Maverick Rs of the Can-Am Factory team and Manuel Andujar (South Racing) entered in the Experimental category were quick the whole week. Overall it is Yasir Seaidan who wins the race and the world cup. Alexandre Pinto (Old Friends Rally) finishes behind the Saudi driver and wins the Road to Dakar Challenge.
In the SSV Open Maroc Telecom, Bartlomiej Kotwica (PBI Rally) and Ali Oubassidi each won three days. In the end, it was the Moroccan and his compatriot co-driver who scored a double coup for the Africa Rallye Team, who’d already won the Rally3 Enduro Cup Afriquia bike category. Great result for the ART class of 2024!

In the truck category, Martin Macik won 6 out of 6! The Czech has won every special stage since Marrakech. His team-mate Kees Koolen came close to taking today off him… Overall Macik finished nearly an hour ahead of the Dutchman.

RADIO BIVOUAC :
As last year, the finish of the race was situated at the entrance of the bivouac. An innovation tested last year in Merzouga and repeated today in Mengoub/Bouârfa to allow competitors’  teams and their families to share this highlight of the race. The wife and father of Ross Branch, the RallyGP world champion, were able to kiss their Hero was he climbed off his bike! A leader in technological innovations, as was the case this week with the digital road book for 100% of the caravan, the Rallye du Maroc is also a pioneer when it comes to emotions.

STAT OF THE DAY: 17 and 10
Daniel Sanders became the 15th FIM motorcyclist to win the race, which was created in 2000. He is the 2nd Australian to achieve this feat after Toby Price. The last of his predecessor’s 3 victories came in 2023. ‘Chucky’ has now put Australia and KTM at the top of the results table for two consecutive years. The Orange team take their 17th victory.
By winning his 7th Moroccan FIA crown, Nasser Al Attiyah equalled the record of success set by navigator Mathieu Baumel, with whom he had won all his previous races. The Frenchman won before the Qatari, in 2011 with Bernhard Ten Brinke. Nasser also won with a3rd different brand, after Mini and Toyota. He adds Dacia to the Rallye du Maroc Hall of Fame, the 10th brand to win in the Kingdom of Morocco.

26^th EDITION: RENDEZ-VOUS FROM 10 TO 17 OCTOBER 2025
For the 17th time in its history, the Rally du Maroc 2025 will be a round of the FIM Rally-Raid World Championship. It has been the final round of the calendar since 2013, the only exception being 2022 when the Andalucía Rally was postponed. Morocco will be the bike riders final for the 11th time and the3rd consecutive time for the FIM and FIA international caravan, united by the W2RC since 2022.

QUOTES :

Daniel Sanders (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing): “It feels good. It’s been a long time since my last win and a lot has happened since then. I’m really happy to be back on top, to have the speed and a bike that is working well. It’s a really good thing before the Dakar. This race has everything going for it. They  just keep improving it. The terrain here is unreal. Due to injuries, first the elbow and then the femur, I missed two Rallye du Maroc in a row. To come back after a difficult Dakar and Argentina is great. Hats off to the team for the quality of the bike.”

Bradley Cox (BAS World KTM Racing): “What a day! I didn’t think it would be possible when I came here. Romain (Dumontier) has been very strong all year. This week has been a dream. When I was a kid, I wrote in my school book: ‘one day, I’ll be world champion’ and I’ve made that dream come true today. It wasn’t an easy day. I crashed in the liaison and slid down the tarmac, then I had another big crash in the special stage. A big thank you to the team, the sponsors and all those who make it happen. Let’s hope 2025 will be as good a year!”

Nasser Al Attiyah (The Dacia Sandriders): “It’s great to win the Rallye du Maroc seven times and also the World Championship for a third time. And of course, I’m very happy to be winning for Dacia for the first time. It hasn’t been an easy year for us after we withdrew from the Dakar. Now, with the new car, we’re looking forward to the 2025 Dakar.”

Sébastien Loeb (The Dacia Sandriders) : “Overall, it has been a good rally. We finished first and second with Dacia, which shows that the car is really competitive and reliable. We broke a wishbone and a steering arm and it’s important to do a rally like this to see what breaks and what we need to improve for the Dakar. Of course, there are a few things we need to sort out, but overall, we’re very happy with the car. The battle is very close between the different cars, so I think it will be interesting for the Dakar.”

Guillaume de Mévius (X-raid Mini JCW): “For our first race with X-raid, we can be satisfied. We lost some time today and second place, but we’re still on the podium, so we’re very happy. For the Dakar, we’ll have the petrol engine and a few other improvements. From what we’ve seen this week, we should be ready to fight in January. We didn’t know that before we came here, so we’re very happy with the way things have gone.”

Carlos Sainz (Ford M-Sport): “Overall, I’m very satisfied. A completely new car, a new team, I’m happy. We have good speed. Apart from one day, the car worked well. It’s very emotional to win a stage with a new car. The Dakar is going to be interesting because Ford, Dacia, Mini and Toyota are all very close.”