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  • Harith Noah finishes Stage 5 in P20; gets P7 in Rally2 class

    Harith Noah finishes Stage 5 in P20; gets P7 in Rally2 class

    Shubaytah (Saudi Arabia), 10 January 2024: Sherco TVS Factory team rider Harith Noah, completed another strong run finishing Stage 5 in P20 and was in 18th place in the Provisional General Classification while taking the P7 slot in his class, the Rally2 category where he is currently in Overall P4 after six days (including the Prologue) and five stages at the Dakar Rally 2024 on Wednesday.

    The fifth stage from Al-Hofuf to Shubaytah had a total distance of 645 km, including 118 km of special and 527 km of liaison consisting mainly of sandy dunes.

    Earlier on Tuesday, Harith Noah continued his strong run with a P21 in Stage 4. He finished P5 in his class, the Rally2 category for bikes.

    The Kerala rider is preparing for Stage 6, another marathon stage which will last for 48 hours. Tomorrow evening, the riders will not have any outside assistance, no internet connection, no news, no information. The sixth stage of the Dakar will be from Shubaytah to Shubaytah, 626 km of special and 209 km of liaison.

    Harith Noah in action during the marathon Stage 5 on Wednesday. A Sherco team image

    Harith Noah said: “It was a short stage and only made up of dunes. I felt good, but I had a little problem, sand slipped into my fuel during refueling. I am very happy to cross the finish line today. Now it’s time to rest and recover well before the marathon stage that starts tomorrow!”

    Noah’s teammate at Sherco, Rui Gonçalves rode in the top-10 for part of the special. He was however the victim of a fall in a dune, he left with pain in his thumb, had to reconnect the navigation system which had been moved out of position because of the fall. He lost contact with the race leaders and ended up finishing the day in 18th position. He managed the navigation well and found the right pace again from the start. He is 15th in the provisional general classification.

    Brand new concept of 48hours

    Thursday’s stage will be an unprecedented challenge that has the competitors quaking in their boots. While this is also a two-day stage, the experience of marathon stages will not be of much use in the new paradigm of the 48-hour chrono stage. Imagine the grandiose clang of a bell filling the twilight air in the Empty Quarter, ordering every single competitor to halt their vehicle and spend the night under the starry skies before getting back on the move at sunrise. This is how this new challenge will work. The time limit is 4pm. When the clock strikes four, the entrants will have to stop at the next of the six rest areas that punctuate the course of the special. Once they get there, the competitors will receive bare-bones camping material and just enough provisions to make it through the night in the desert, without any connection and, therefore, without any information on how their rivals are doing. Cut off from the rest of the world.

    Never before have the title contenders in the motorbike category spent eight hours in a special. The Empty Quarter, with dunes as far as the eye can see, will set the scene for this historic first. The race is no stranger to this area, but the difficulty of this larger-than- life special has been kicked up a notch. Chotts will give the competitors some time to breathe between one dune chain and the next. However, the navigation will be fiendishly difficult, with hard-to-find courses and hidden WPs that will drive many entrants round the bend: “I won’t be winning any popularity contests,” sighs David Castera. In fact, his old brothers in arms in the car category will face the same challenge as the two-wheelers. The FIA and FIM entrants will follow separate courses, so the co-drivers will have to do without the motorbikes’ traces”.

    Stage 5 Ranking

    Rui Gonçalves: P18

    Harith Noah: P20

    Provisional general classification

    Rui Gonçalves: P15

    Harith Noah: P18

  • Harith Noah creates history with a Stage podium in Rally2 class: Dakar 2024

    Harith Noah creates history with a Stage podium in Rally2 class: Dakar 2024

    Al Hofuf (Saudi Arabia) 8 January 2024: Indian Dakar hero, Harith Noah, created history becoming the first rider from India to get a stage podium in his class,the Rally2, at the prestigious Dakar Rally with a third place in the tough marathon Stage 3 on Monday. The TVS product from Kerala, finished the stage in third place conquering the 733-km long stage from Al Slamiya to Al Hofuf. In the Overall classification for bikes, he finished in P17.

    He clocked 4 hours, 54 minutes and 39 seconds, about 7min 35 seconds adrift to the stage winner in Rally2.

    “I feel physically normal again, and had no headaches today. The marathon stage today was supposed to be difficult navigation, especially towards the end. So I focused on it as much as I could rather than on speed. It was also very important to get the bike through today, without any crashes or problems as it’s a marathon stage with only two hours of service, post the stage. Tonight, we all will be sleeping in the tents in the middle of the desert,” said Harith Noah, after the stage.

    As a reminder, just after the finish of the special, the riders, drives and crews will be able to reacquaint themselves with their light assistance teams, who will have 2 hours to work on their machines. The competitors will then head via the link route to a bivouac solely reserved for them. They will park their vehicles in a secure enclosure and will not be able to touch them before collecting them tomorrow morning for the start. Eight large 20 x 8 Khaïma tents await them. A catering service, a medical service, a podium and toilet blocks make up the facilities set up. The competitors have given the organisers a packet that they will be given back on arrival, for a first night of camping before the next one on the 48 hours against the clock stage on the evening of stage 6A.

    Tomorrow, the riders will set off for the fourth stage of the Dakar, from Al Salamiya to Al-Hofuf, 631 km including 299 km of special and 332 km of liaison which will close the marathon with its 299 km of special. The terrain promises to be smoother, but navigation will once again be tricky.

    Note: Last edited on 9 Jan 2024 at 09.52am

  • Harith Noah finishes fifth in Rally2 class and Overall P22: Dakar Stage 2

    Harith Noah finishes fifth in Rally2 class and Overall P22: Dakar Stage 2

    Al Duwadimi (Saudi Arabia), 7 January 2024: Ace rider from India, Harith Noah, pelted out another strong performance to stay in the top-10 of his class and an overall P22 in the 655-km Stage 2 on Sunday and is all set for the marathon stage on Monday. Harith Noah finished fifth in his class and is currently fourth in the General Overall ranking after two stages.

    The Kerala rider from Sherco TVS Rally team put in a stellar performance and was feeling better on the bike after yesterday’s ‘mysterious’ cramps. “I felt physically better today. It was a fast stage and though I did many small navigation mistakes, especially towards the end, I tried to put my head down and stayed focused. Tomorrow is the marathon stage and I am ready for it,” said the fastest rider at Dakar from India. Harith Noah astride a Sherco 450 SEF Rally bike is on his fifth Dakar. He is attempting to finish the mother of all rallies for a second time. In 2021, he finished a creditable 21 to become the fastest rider from India.

    Sam Sunderland and Daniel Sanders rattled up leader board

    After easing themselves into the 2024 Dakar Rally on stage one, Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing’s Sam Sunderland and Daniel Sanders certainly turned things up a notch on Day 2. Faring best for the potent pairing was Sunderland who, despite riding through a lot of dust, clocked in with the sixth-fastest time to advance to seventh in the provisional standings. Meanwhile, for Sanders, a couple of small mistakes proved costly, but the good news is, he’s perfected the set-up of his RX 450F and his unquestionable raw speed returned on stage two. Chucky placed 12th and slides up the leaderboard to sixth overall.

    Overall Provisional Classification (after stage 2) RallyGP
    1. Ross Branch (Hero) 9:50:05
    2. Jose Ignacio Cornejo (Honda) 9:53:00
    3. Ricky Brabec (Honda) 09:57:20
    6. Daniel Sanders (GASGAS) 10:07:29
    7. Sam Sunderland (GASGAS) 10:08:24

    Provisional Stage Classification Rally2 (after Stage 2)

    1.  Jeanloup Lepan (Fra), Duust Rally Team 4:40:41;

    2.  Diego Gamaliel Llanos (Arg), Xraids Experience 4:42:28;

    3.  Toni Mulec (Svn), BAS World KTM Racing Team, 4:44:07;

    4. Paolo Lucci (Ita), BAS World KTM Racing Team, 4:45:19;

    5. Harith Noah (India) Sherco TVS Rally Factory Team, 4:45:35;

    Overall Provisional Classification Rally2 (after Stage 2)

    1. Romain Dumontier (Fra), Team Dumontier Racing, 10hours, 15min, 48sec;

    2. Bradley Cox (Zaf), BAS World KTM Racing Team, 10:28:35;

    3. Jeanloup Lepan (Fra), Duust Rally Team, 10:32:54;

    4. Harith Noah (India) Sherco TVS Rally Factory Team, 10:40:31;

  • Harith Noah finishes P6 in his class despite cramps; ends Stage 1 in Overall 21st

    Harith Noah finishes P6 in his class despite cramps; ends Stage 1 in Overall 21st

    Al Henakiyah (Saudi Arabia) 6 Jan. 2024: Despite cramps and severe pain, TVS Racing product, Harith Noah, proved that he is made of sterner mettle and began his fifth Dakar cautiously but on a strong note, finishing Stage 1 at 21st place among 132 riders in the Moto class of the Dakar Rally after riding a tough 414-km terrain on Saturday.

    “Saturday was a very hard day for me. After refuelling at kilometre 200 or so, I started getting cramps all over my body and then a very bad headache. This has never happened to me before. Quitting really crossed my mind a couple of times. Trying to figure out what could have caused this and hopping it won’t happen again,” said Harith Noah from Dakar and on a note of hope, continued… “On to tomorrow!”

    The hiccups notwithstanding, the fastest rider at Dakar from India, Noah, posted his best Stage ranking in his class Rally2, with a commendable sixth position. He is supported by TVS company, Sherco, Scott India, Red Bull India, Stanley Tools India, 100%, Alpine Stars and Mobius Braces.

    Harith Noah at Dakar 2024 in Saudi Arabia. A TVS photo

    Ashish Raorane crashes out with fractured collar bone

    The other Indian at Dakar, privateer Ashish Raorane from Pune, crashed out after 168 km mark as he fractured his collar bone in two places. A disappointed Ashish, who was riding a a KTM 450 Rally Replica, said: “I am absolutely gutted. At KM169 of today’s stage, I had a crash and fractured my collar bone. I tried to ride on, but it was an impossible task. It’s a hard pill to swallow when you’ve spent a few years preparing to have all that hard work wiped off in seconds but I guess that’s the nature of off-road sport. I definitely was feeling great on the bike today, unfortunately a silly crash did me in. It’s definitely gonna take sometime to digest this.”

    “For now, I’ve to head back to India to get a surgery done to fix me up. Thank you for the support and wishes, I wish there was a better outcome to this campaign,”he lamented.

    The Indian rider supported by Xraids Experience team is in Rally2 class. He finished Dakar in the experience class in 2021 and this is his second attempt. He is supported by Rynox Gear, Reise Moto, Dosmoto Design, Slipstream Performance, Motousher, Bigbadbikes, Lazyassbikers, Eleven777, Wanderlooms, Baycity Powerparts.

    Ashish Raorane in action on Stage 1, before he crashed out at 168-km point on 6 Jan. 2024.

    Harith Noah… on to tomorrow

    Starting the Special between rocks and canyons on sand for the first 25km, similar to what he tackled in the prologue on Friday. While the sandy canyons are more open and faster till PK22, the later mountainous canyons with lots of eroded rocks offered more technical terrain that is difficult to navigate and easy to make mistakes. But the Kerala champion then navigated the terrain which was open alternating sections of wadis, off-piste and lots of changes of direction despite being wavy and winding. It went on to rough ground, rocks of volcanic lava for about another 130 km before finishing on the alternating tracks and wadis to end the day with an overall P21 finish. Towards the second half, he started getting cramps and had to ride with grit and will power, even though the route offered gravel tracks inside of narrow valleys surrounded by mountains and volcanic rivers of black stones and wide valleys on gravel. They had beautiful sectors of vegetation too but the TVS rider was struggling to continue. But with a determined focus on the finish line, Noah continued the tempo and never gave up to end overall 21st clocking, 5 hours, 33 minutes and 42 seconds astride his Sherco TVS 450 SEF Rally from AlUla to Al Henakiyah.

    Indian Constructor Hero’s Ross Branch romped home with the fastest time in the special and scooped up his fourth career Dakar stage win. The Botswanan airline pilot who moonlights as a rally-raid racer also surged ahead in the overall, where he now holds a 12-minute margin over the 2020 Dakar champion, Ricky Brabec, and Mason Klein, who embraced the task of opening the road with panache and spent the entire stage alone at the front. 

    J-Rod crashes out

    Rule number 1 in a motorbike race is to stay upright no matter how many pebbles, stones or rocks stand in the way. A couple of riders broke this cardinal rule this morning, as the seasoned Joaquim Rodrigues crashed out of the race at km 82 and the budding talent Tosha Schareina bowed out of his third Dakar at km 240 with a fractured arm. “J-Rod” had earned the Hero Motosport Rally team their maiden stage-win in 2022.

    Performance of the Day

    Mason Klein, once the training partner of Harith Noah, was not even sure that he would be able to start his third Dakar on his brand-new second-generation Kove, which got stuck in customs in Dubai, but his Chinese mount finally arrived a few hours before the gong rang on the technical scrutineering.

    The American finished in the top-10 in the prologue and picked his starting order for Stage 1. The 22-year-old privateer chose to start first, a position typically avoided by Rally GP riders that would have usually gone to Skyler Howes, the worst performer in the opening romp.

    “The idea of opening the first stage at the Dakar is really cool so, in the end, no regrets because now I can say I’ve done it.” Klein again showed that he is a box full of surprises, not just because he spent the 400-km long hard slog alone at the front, picking up 6 hours, 21min. in bonuses and third place at the finish, but also because he did it on a motorbike that he had barely even touched before, “This is my third time on the bike now and I couldn’t be happier.” Today, Klein proved two things to himself and the rest of the field. First, that China has what it takes to become a rally-raid superpower in the near future. And second, that the word “impossible” is just a challenge to the 22-year-old American.

    Cox-Dumontier, a duel at the summit

    Bradley Cox and Romain Dumontier finished third and first, respectively, in the 2023 FIM Rally-Raid World Cup in the Rally 2 class, the last rung on the ladder before Rally GP. The South African and the Frenchman make no secret of their common ambition in this edition of the Dakar: to show their faces in the top 10 of each stage to try and catch the eye of a factory team. Alfie Cox’s son, victorious in the last two Rally 2 rounds in 2023, finished the special in fourth place, within two minutes of the overall podium. “Dudu”, sixth today, is less than a minute behind his new arch-rival for the championship. The two Rally 2 riders outperformed as many as thirteen of the sixteen factory riders still in the Dakar. The Rally 2 scene is gaining depth. Take Mason Klein: a veteran of the Rally 2 class, which he won in 2022, he is now standing on the provisional podium of the Dakar.

    On Sunday, 7th of January, the riders will set off for the 2nd stage of the Dakar, from Al Henakiyah to Al Duwadimi, 655 km of racing.

  • Harith Noah finishes Prologue in 29th place; Ashish Raorane 73rd

    Harith Noah finishes Prologue in 29th place; Ashish Raorane 73rd

    AlUla (Saudi Arabia) 29 Dec. 2023: The fastest Dakar rider representing India, Harith Noah, began his fifth Dakar cautiously but finished in 29th place in the Prologue. With 142 riders taking the start in the Dakar, it was a creditable show that rules his starting position for the Stage 1 on Day 1 tomorrow, the 6th January 2024. But in his Rally2 class, Harith Noah finished a noteworthy 9th place clocking at time of 21 minutes, 14 seconds, about 1min 31sec, behind the leader in his class.

    Harith Noah said: “The prologue was short and sandy with tricky navigation. I had to turn around to get a waypoint, but I didn’t waste too much time. This is the usual for the prologue, but it’s over now and I’m looking forward to stage 1 tomorrow”.

    The clock started today for the participants in the 2024 Dakar with the prologue. They had to race on a 27-km course through canyons around AlUla. The Sherco riders did not take any risks and approached the prologue as a warm-up before the real start and the first stage tomorrow, 127-km liaison and 414 km of special from AlUla to Al Henakiyah.

    The journey once again began as a Team Sherco TVS Factory Rally rider, Noah, who became the fastest at Dakar, scoring a note-worthy top-20 performance in 2022 bettering the result of CS Santosh, is all set to overcome the drawback he suffered last year. Other Sherco riders, Lorenzo Santolino finished the Prologue at P12 while the third rider, Rui Goncalves ended the opening day at P18.

    Ashish Raorane, the second Indian

    The other Indian rider, Pune privateer Ashish Raorane, managed to finish P73 in his class, the Rally2. He clocked a time of 31min, 25sec.

    Ashish Raorane’ is no factory rider. He spends most of his time on boats as a marine engineer. As a kid he started riding on the old rusty bike of his father. Several decades later he was participating in a cross-country rally in the Himalayas that gave him that taste and desire for the Dakar. Inspired by CS Santosh, the first Indian biker to start and finish the Dakar (back in 2015), he wanted to prove to his fellow compatriots that the Dakar wasn’t only for top factory riders. A very competitive table-tennis player back in his youth, he wanted to show that a normal biker could give it a go. Sadly that first Dakar in 2021 ended as soon as stage 5 when the Indian from Mumbai crashed out. He was able however to continue in the Dakar Experience all the way to Jeddah but that certainly wasn’t what he was hoping for. Three years later Raorane has decided to return for unfinished business. This time the 42-year-old will be part of the Xraids Experience team. An option he hopes will this time help him achieve his dream.

    How it all began for Ashish!

    “A friend of mine was at home and he showed me a documentary about the Baja 1000. We were both fascinated. That’s what pushed me to compete in Baja races in India. In 2015, I did my first cross-country rally in the Himalayas. I then built on that experience with the aim to one day do the Dakar. I followed the Dakar thanks to CS Santosh. He was an inspiration. I raced with him in India and he’s been very helpful. But it seemed that only Indian factory riders were able to do the Dakar and my idea was to change that perspective and show that a privateer like me can do it. My experience at the first Dakar was bitter sweet. Being my first Dakar, and in the Original by Motul category, I knew it was going to be tough but I was happy with how I was managing my race. The unfortunate accident on stage 5 took me out of the running. My return to the Dakar Rally is the next natural step for me, which ideally should’ve have happened in Dakar 2023 but several factors led to that not happening, ‘’c’est la vie’’. This time I’m racing with Team Xraids Experience from Spain and they’ve provided me excellent support from the beginning of 2023, racing at the Abu Dhabi Desert and through the year after that for preparations. We are working closely now to have the best possible solution for my Dakar’24 campaign”.

    Saturday, Stage 1

    The tough, action-packed challenge of Stage 1 sets the tone for the 2024 edition. Its course, drawn from scratch in an area with geological features never seen before in the Dakar, will throw the competitors in at the deep end. The field will snake around volcanoes in a palette of mineral hues filled with every shade of grey, from the dimmest to the brightest. Even at this early point in the race, this stage is difficult enough to open big gaps. It has both huge stretches of sands and difficult dunes.

  • Sarah Khan, fighting the odds to shine in bike racing: A profile

    Sarah Khan, fighting the odds to shine in bike racing: A profile

    A series of Special articles and profiles of promising riders and drivers will be published for all fmsci National championship till the season begins. Here is the first…

    Bengaluru, 2 Jan 2024: Sarah Khan began the 2023 season with a podium in the TVS One-Make Championship (OMC) ladies class at the Rolon Round, the first round of the MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship for two-wheelers 2023 which concluded at the Kari Motor Speedway in June first week.

    Rookie Sarah Khan, who gave a tough fight to celebrated champions in the very first year of her participation in the MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Drag Racing Championship 2022, finally ended up third in the Championship due to lack of exposure and experience, but the determined lady rider worked hard and won many hearts with her perseverance. Amidst all the competition, one rider who silently improved every round as she notched up a podium every time she took part in a race is Sarah Khan. She began with a third place in the first round itself and went on to become the 2nd runner up National Championship and bagged a total of 11 podiums overall in her rookie season itself.

    Sarah Khan is a modest, soft-spoken girl in early twenties. She is born on February 19, in the last year of the last millennium, in a traditional Muslim family. Behind the tall athlete’s humble appearance, lies a strong will to achieve and the reason is her passion for speed. A dedicated and hardworking biker, she worked hard to save every penny after acquiring a Bachelor of Business Management degree in Mumbai’s MMK College of Commerce and Economics. Without a single penny in her pocket, she started to fund her motorsports activities on her own by trading stocks, working hard to save every rupee. Striving to be a high-performance motorsports athlete, competing with men on equal footing, she overcame many hardships both at home at the tracks to pursue a career that is not easy for girls.

    “The spark for me is the feeling of thrill and speed. And the adrenaline rush that pumps up my blood. Racing gives me a sense of being alive, a genuine happiness. Despite the struggles and hurdles, I cannot quit racing or do something else. I feel like it’s in my blood… intricately woven into my soul. All I think about is racing all day, everyday… That’s just how my brain is wired,” says Sarah, the eternal optimist.

    The struggles she went through to make her childhood dream a reality did not deter her. Her perseverance conquered and she finally made her racing debut in 2022, at the Mecca of Racing in India, the Madras International Circuit. Despite coming from a non-motorsport background and having no support, she opted for racing and made it on her own, traditionally considered a man’s world and she is breaking all stereotypes, which the MIC is known for, promoting many a woman from traditional communities.

    “I have genuine love for racing. And I could not keep quiet. I did fight hard to get out of the house to race. It made me stronger. And I will continue to race, even when I turn old, as long as I am physically fit. Later, too, I plan on train young riders with a similar dream, who aspire to be great one day. I just want to race at the highest platform possible on earth,” she says. What she does not say is, she threatened her family that she will leave the house, if anyone tries to come in her way of becoming a racing athlete. A reluctant loving mother had no choice but to agree.

    Thus began a career, which broke all the stereotypes.“Being stubborn towards my dream was the only way to make it happen,” says Sarah. The struggle behind her journey is one of the reasons for her determination to win.

  • Geoffrey Emmanuel to take part in FIM Junior World Championship 2024

    Geoffrey Emmanuel to take part in FIM Junior World Championship 2024

    Chennai, 2 Jan 2024: Nineteen-year Chennai’s Geoffrey Emmanuel has confirmed his participation in the FIM Junior World Championship 2024 and he will be representing AGR Team astride a KTM.

    The FIM JuniorGP 2024 comprises 14 races spread across seven rounds. The first round is scheduled to be held in Italy (April 20-21). Spain will host two rounds and Portugal, four, including the final round (Nov 23-24).

    Looking ahead to the new season, Geoffrey, who made his international debut in 2022, participating in the Hawkers European Talent Cup at the age of 17, said: “I’m very excited to be part of the AGR Team and to be able to train with 111 Management to improve my career as a professional rider. I can’t wait to have new experiences with my new team!” Geoffrey will be shifting to Spain in February to prepare for the 2024 season.


    Geoffrey Emmanuel file photo

    According to team owner Anscari Nadal, having an Indian rider like Geoffrey is a challenge, but the goal is to nurture his talent and help him progress in the FIM Junior GP, eventually leading to a Wild Card promotion in the World Championship.

    In 2023, Geoffrey made history as the first and only Indian competitor in the FIM JuniorGP, riding a KTM for the Cuna de Campeones team. Although he didn’t score any points, his overall improvement was encouraging.

    Reflecting on his 2023 experience, Geoffrey said: “It was a steep learning curve. Adapting to a new bike, unfamiliar tracks, and tough competition was not easy. However, I managed to narrow the gap with the front-runners, placing more emphasis on personal growth and improvement rather than specific results.”

    Geoffrey, however, tasted success in the Malaysian Superbike Championship 2023, competing in the Group A MSBK 250 category. Despite facing challenges in Round 2 where he finished fifth, he showcased his skills in the Round-3 double-header by securing third place in Race 1 and topping Race 2 for his maiden international victory. He also achieved an overall third place finish in the Championship standings.

  • Harith Noah, Ashish Raorane to represent India at Dakar 2024, the mother of all rallies

    Harith Noah, Ashish Raorane to represent India at Dakar 2024, the mother of all rallies

    Ø  The start list contains the names of two Indians among the 140 riders who will tackle the 46th Dakar on two wheels, exploring Saudi Arabia from AlUla to Yanbu between 5 and 19 January. The defending champion, Kevin Benavides, is still on the mend after a succumbing to multiple injuries this season, but his brother Luciano, the reigning W2RC champion, will be leading the charge for the wider KTM constellation through its subsidiary Husqvarna.

    Ø Harith Noah, the Kerala rider, will represent India once again, as a Sherco TVS team member, in the top class while Ashish Raorane, of Team Xraids Experience, will be the only other Indian at the 2024 Dakar participating as a privateeer.

    Ø  However, their rivals at Honda have an even deeper roster. The two signings of this season, Skyler Howes and Tosha Schareina, are but two of the six red riders with a real shot at the top step of the podium.

    Ø  Hero, with Joan Barreda joining Ross Branch, and Sherco, once again with Lorenzo Santolino as its designated leader, are also forces to be reckoned with.

    AlUla (Saudi Arabia) 29 Dec. 2023: Five-time Indian National Supercross champion will be attempting his fifth Dakar as he begins his journey once again as a Team Sherco Factory Rally. Noah, who became the fastest at Dakar, scoring a note-worthy top-20 performance in 2021 bettering the result of CS Santosh, is once again raring to go. Last year, he failed to complete the course due to a technical failure and only completed Dakar 2023 in the non-competitive Experience Class. He will be once again on a #20 Sherco 450 SEF Rally spec.

    Pune privateer Ashish Raorane will be the other Indian to take part in the 2024 Dakar Rally which begins here on Jan 5. Rane, who managed to make his Dakar debut in 2021 amidst Covid 19 against all odds, will be making his second attempt to finish the mighty Dakar. In his maiden attempt, he completed the Dakar Rally in the Malle Moto Class, an Experience class that was added in the same year despite a massive crash that resulted in a head injury and called for medical evac. This year too he will astride a KTM 450 Rally Replica and serviced by Team Xraids Experience in the R2 class.

    File photo of Ashish Raorane from 2023 ADDC. INDIAinF1 archives

    “Embarking on my daring quest to conquer Dakar, the toughest race in the world, as a passionate biker, there were moments when the idea of giving up crossed my mind. Yet, my story is an unfolding saga, a thrilling ride through challenges, fuelled by a relentless pursuit of improvement. It’s a journey of becoming better, faster, and stronger, fuelled by the unwavering belief and motivation I have received from my Ghar ka Champion, my father,” said Harith Noah KV on Thursday in a social media reel, along with his father Mohammed Rafi KV, who was his inspiration and support.

    Never-ending learning curve

    The Dakar is an Everest to climb even for the most talented riders. And even when the summit is reached, the attempts after a first achievement can be very brutal. It took Harith Noah two editions to learn and adapt but 6 years after CS Santosh, Harith Noah became the second Indian rider to reach the finish of the world’s toughest rally. Not only did he achieve his dream he also managed the best ever performance for an Indian claiming an excellent 20th overall position in 2021.

    The following two editions were once again painful, especially last year when the wonderkid from Shoranur in Kerala crashed out on stage 4 and fractured the fifth thoracic vertebrae (T5) of his spine. A very worrying crash that could have had terrible consequences. So it really has been a rollaer coaster rider for Noah on the Dakar. Born in Germany he had a rather long journey before taking on rallies. It started on his sixteenth birthday when he was given a motorbike. A weekend later, he was racing and although he finished last of that first race, his passion grew. His first encounter with the Dakar came thanks to the video tapes his dad would bring back from his business trips all over the world. He was 5 years old then and far from imagining that he would be on the start line of the Dakar. Part of the Sherco TVS factory team, the 29-year old had a confidence boost this season when he won the Transanatolia rally back in September. He then went on to conquer 15th spot at the Rallye du Maroc. Time now to switch back into Dakar mode and once again hope to reach the finish in style.

    File photo of Harish Noah 28Dec2021

    Harith Noah
    “I got my first bike in 2009 and on the next weekend I was racing in the paddy fields by my house in Kerala. I fell in love with it immediately. Two years later I became national supercross champion in the privateer class. About the last Dakar, it was a painful one. On stage 4, there was a small step of sand and once I hit it, I bottomed out on the rear and went over the bars. I landed on my head first and then my back. While I did break the T5, there was no nerve damage. A few centimetres to the left or right could have changed everything. Of course, I analysed what went wrong and how I can ensure that it doesn’t happen again. All you can do is keep your head up and try to move forward. For 2024, I’ll be able to push hard only if I am physically fit. Then mentally, I need to stay cool in situations where things are out of control. It happens at every Dakar; everything from small crashes to navigation mistakes. I just try to minimise it as much as possible – be efficient, be in the moment, and see what’s ahead. Though I’ve been riding for a while now, it’s a never-ending learning curve when it comes to racing. I need to adapt to everything that comes my way. For instance, there was a lot of rain last year, which has never happened before. And once you make a mistake, you start thinking about it. Though I’m a competitive rider and want to keep improving, I have never looked at the result during the race. It’s something that my psychologist and I decided on right after the first Dakar. I like to take it kilometre by kilometre, stage by stage. If I ride as good as I can each day, I’ll finish where I deserve to.”

    Top guns

    The clockwork orange has sand in its gears!  After securing a one-two finish in the last Dakar, with Kevin Benavides clinching the trophy by just 43 seconds over Toby Price, the factory KTM riders were unable to carry over this form to the rest of the season. The two-time champion (2021 and 2023) from Argentina broke his femur just before the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, fractured his wrist shortly after returning to training for the Desafío Ruta 40 and recently hurt his leg again in the run-up to the 2024 edition. Toby Price showed remarkable consistency throughout the W2RC season, capping it with victory in the Rallye du Maroc, only to come up four points short of the title at the end of the championship. The man from Oz is still at the helm of the Austrian squad, which lost its standard-bearer, Matthias Walkner, to a multiple leg fracture in early December.

    Another star, though, is burning with the light of a thousand suns in the wider KTM constellation: Luciano Benavides, enrolled in the Swedish-born subsidiary Husqvarna, will be sporting race number 1 in the Dakar. The man of the year, who started the season with a hat-trick of stage wins in the last Dakar, became the world champion after finishing second in every other round. This success makes him one of the hot favourites to take the rally despite not having finished in the top 5 before. The Spanish division is also bringing its firepower to bear, with GasGas again fielding Daniel Sanders, who opened his rally raid account in the Sonora Rally, as well as the two-time winner Sam Sunderland, who will be out to settle the score after withdrawing from one race after another in 2023.

    In the opposing camp, Monster Energy Honda Team is brimming with confidence after taking its second back-to-back W2RC manufacturers’ title and rolling out the latest version of its CRF 450 Rally in the Moroccan finale. The management of the reds has landed a few nice catches in this year’s transfer market. After bringing Adrien Van Beveren on board in 2022, the Japanese maker has signed the American Skyler Howes, third in the 2023 Dakar, and the Spanish young gun Tosha Schareina, the runner-up in the Sonora Rally and later winner of the Desafío Ruta 40. Honda have also got other aces up their sleeve: Ricky Brabec already tasted glory in 2020, while Pablo Quintanilla has cracked the top 5 six times (including the second spot in 2020 and 2022) and his compatriot Nacho Cornejo scored a near-miss in 2021. The team has a shot at victory with each of its six riders. However, they will also have to contend with the Indian maker Hero, where Ross Branch, never far from the top spots this season, has been joined by Joan Barreda, who has his sights set on his 30th career stage win and perhaps even loftier goals. Other candidates for the places of honour include the Sherco riders, chief among them Lorenzo Santolino, who is bound and determined to improve on his sixth place overall from 2021.

    One step below the big guns, the Rally2 riders are also in the mix for the top 10. For example, the 2023 winner, Romain Dumontier, who came in fourteenth in Saudi Arabia and dominated the W2RC season to take the title in the category. He will have to keep an eye on his main rivals for the championship, from the Italian Paolo Lucci and the Frenchman Jean-Loup Lepan to the South African Bradley Cox. The advent of the Kove motorbikes could also shake up the ranking. The Chinese maker is pinning its hopes on two Chinese riders, Sunier Sunier and Fang Xiangliang, as well as the Frenchmen Neels Theric (eighteenth in 2023) and Xavier Flick (thirty-second in 2021). Mason Klein, a former category champion who moved up to RallyGP last year but failed to make an impression among the leading constructors, is also returning on a Kove, albeit with his own structure.

  • Historic ‘Grand Dozen’: 12 National titles for Hemanth Mudappa

    Historic ‘Grand Dozen’: 12 National titles for Hemanth Mudappa

    Chennai, 24 Dec. 2023: Ten-time Indian National drag racing champion Hemanth Muddappa from Mantra Racing became the most-decorated motorsports athlete with an unprecedented dozen National titles as he remained unbeaten in the top two classes and emerged a double champion in the MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Drag Racing Championship which concluded at the Madras International Circuit (MIC) in Irungattukottai, near here, on Sunday.

    He made it a sweet double as he emerged triumphant in both the Unrestricted class and the 1051 to 1650cc class in the fourth and final round. He won the Unrestricted class and the 1051 to 1650cc categories despite suffering a wheelie at the start in the later race and annexed the top place in both Round 3 and Round 4 races held today to bring his tally of National titles to a grand dozen. He remained unbeaten in these top two classes in all the four rounds, throughout the year.

    Earlier in the morning, he won the 4-stroke Unrestricted category astride the Suzuki Hayabusa, beating arch-rival and Bengaluru mate Alimon Saidalvi, clocking a blistering 07.746 and went on to claim another first place in the 4S 1051 to 1650cc class beating another stalwart Mohammed Riyaz of Hyderabad with a time of 7.779sec. Riyaz, who came third in the Unrestricted class had the consolation winning the 551 to 850cc Super Sport class, where Muddappa could only finish third behind another Hyderabad rider Mirza Jahangir, who took second.

    “It is a grand dozen and I am proud of the long and strong relationship with Mantra Racing that has brought a lot of happiness, not to talk about the hard work and struggles we underwent throughout the year. It is an amazing journey and I am glad we got a double. My thanks to all the boys, my family and my supporters,” said Muddappa, who is nicknamed as ‘LightningR1’ for his brute speed.

    Hemanth Muddappa with his 2023 trophies. Photo by Srinivasa Krishnan

    “Both Hemanth Muddappa and Mantra Racing have began the journey at the hallowed track of MIC and have dominated the National Drag scene like no other team at all circuits in the country and have produced great results and records culminating into 12 National titles, a record in the Indian drag racing history,” said Sharan Pratap, who tunes the champion’s bikes.

    Provisional Results: Round 3: Unrestricted: 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.746); 2. Alimon Saidalvi (Bengaluru) (07.867); 3. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.064).

    1051-1650cc (Super Sport): 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.737); 2. Alimon (Bengaluru) (08.101); 3. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.146).

    551-850cc (Super Sport): 1. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.478); 2. Mirza Jahangir (Hyderabad) (08.541); 3. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) 08.579).

    Round 4: Unrestricted: 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.706); 2. Alimon Saidalvi (Bengaluru) (07.740); 3. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (07.894).

    1051-1650cc (Super Sport): 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.718); 2. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.053); 3. Mirza Jahangir (Hyderabad) (08.077).

    551-850cc (Super Sport): 1. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.544); 2. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) 08.913); 3. Mirza Jahangir (Hyderabad) (09.079).

  • Shah Rukh Khan, Arfath, Madhan Kumar clinch 2023 title each; Jagathishree bags Ladies crown

    Shah Rukh Khan, Arfath, Madhan Kumar clinch 2023 title each; Jagathishree bags Ladies crown

    Chennai, 23 Dec 2023: Winning all the four races in four rounds, Mumbai’s Shah Rukh Khan (Mantra Racing) and Jagathishree Kumaresan from Chennai (One Racing) annexed the 2023 championship title in the 4-Stroke 361-550cc and Girls (4S 165cc, Novice) categories respectively, in the MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Drag Racing Championship 2023 at the Madras International Circuit, Irungattukotta, near here on Saturday.

    Meanwhile, two Bengalureans, Mohammed Arfath (2-Stroke 131-165cc Super Sport), Mohammed Fazil (2S 165cc Super Sport India), and Chennai’s Madhan Kumar R (2S Up to 130cc Super Sport) also topped the championship in their respective categories.

    Jagathishree wins Ladies Class. All photos by Karan Ravi

    It was hectic action at the MIC as the backlog of races from Round 2 in September that was affected by rains, were conducted along with the third and fourth rounds. The championship will conclude tomorrow (Sunday) when races of Rounds 3 and 4 in the remaining categories will be run.

    2023 CHAMPIONS: From left Madhan Kumar, Shahrukh Khan, Jagathishree, Mohammed Fazil, Shahinsha (runner up), Mohammed Arfath. Photo by Srinivasa Krishnan

    While the championships were being decided, the attention was on the “big boys” of drag racing. Bengaluru’s Hemanth Muddappa (Mantra Racing) notched a double by topping the Round-2 races in the Unrestricted and 1051-1650cc (Super Sport) categories ahead of his main rivals, Hyderabad’s Mohammed Riyaz and Mirza Jahangir, and fellow-Bengalurean Sugan Prasad.

    The results (all 4-Stroke unless mentioned):

    Madhan Kumar wins 2-Stroke 130cc Super Sport National title for 2023

    ROUND-4

    361-550CC: 1. Sharukh Khan (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (11.380secs); 2. Jason D’Souza (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (11.869); 3. Mohammed Fazil (Bengaluru) (12.044). National champion: Shah Rukh Khan. Team champions: Mantra Racing.

    165cc (Super Sport Indian): 1. Saravanan E (Chennai) 13.806); 2. Shainsha R (Chennai) 13.953); 3. Bharathraj Jayaraman (Chennai, Gulf Rockers Racing) (14.016). National champion: Mohammed Fazil (Bengaluru). Team champions: Gulf Rockers Racing.

    Girls (165cc, Novice): 1. Jagathishree Kumaresan (Chennai, One Racing) (16.131); 2. Soundari A (Chennai, AS Motorsports) (16.641); 3. Elakkiya (Coimbatore, AS Motorsports) (16.705). National champion: Jagathishree Kumaresan. Team champions: One Racing.

    2-Stroke 131-165cc (Super Sport): 1. Mohammed Arfath (Bengaluru) (12.828); 2. Abdul Shaikh (Bengaluru) (12.890); 3. Ashok S (Bengaluru) (13.017). National champion: Mohammed Arfath.

    2-Stroke Up to 130cc (Super Sport): 1. Aravind Ganesh (Chennai, ACCSYS India Rookies Racing) (13.221); 2. Madhan Kumar R (Chennai) (13.318); 3. Suresh Kumar R (Chennai) (14.508). National champion: Madhan Kumar R. Team champions: ACCSYS India Rookies Racing.

    Support Race (166-225cc): 1. Balasubramaniam R (Chennai) (13.757); 2. Badhusha M (Chennai) (14.079); 3. Madhan Kumar R (Chennai) (14.683).

    ROUND-3

    Madhan Kumar in action. Photo by Karan Ravi

    361-550cc (Super Sport Indian): 1. Shah Rukh Khan (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (11.409); 2. Jason D’Souza (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (11.929); 3. Abdul Shaikh (Bengaluru) (12.229).

    165cc (Super Sport Indian): 1. Shahinsha R (Chennai) (14.088); 2. Mohammed Fazil (Bengaluru) (14.181); 3. Bharathraj Jayaraman (Chennai, Gulf Rockers Racing) (14.187).

    Girls (165cc, Novice): 1. Jagathishree Kumaresan (Chennai) (16.089); 2. Soundari A (Chennai) (16.676); 3. Lani Fernandez (Puducherry) (16.722).

    2-Stroke 135-165cc (Super Sport): 1. Mohammed Arfath (Bengaluru) (12.933); 2. Mustafa Siraj Khan (Bengaluru) (12.988); 3. Ashok S (Bengaluru) (13.046).

    2-Stroke 130cc (Super Sport): 1. Madhan Kumar R (Chennai) (13.118); 2. Aravind Ganesh R (Chennai, Accsys India Rookies Racing) (13.426); 3. Mohammed Arfath (Bengaluru) (13.523).

    Support Race (166-225cc): 1. Balasubramaniam R (Chennai) (13.603); 2. Badhusha M (Chennai) (13.813); 3. Madhan Kumar R (Chennai) (14.510).

    ROUND-2

    Unrestricted: 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.808); 2. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (07.972); 3. Sugan Prasad SP (Bengaluru) (08.239).

    1051-1650cc (Super Sport): 1. Hemanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) (07.779); 2. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.012); 3. Mirza Jahangir (Hyderabad) (08.210).

    551-850cc (Super Sport): 1. Mohammed Riyaz (Hyderabad) (08.504); 2. Mirza Jahangir (Hyderabad) (08.748); 3. Mehanth Muddappa (Bengaluru, Mantra Racing) 08.850).

    361-550cc (Super Sport): 1. Shahrukh Khan (Mumbai, Mantra Racing) (11.505); 2. Mohammed Fazil (Bengaluru) (11.937); 3. Altaf Khan (Hyderabad) (12.134).