After Kevin Benavides’ triumph last January, Red Bull KTM faces Dakar 2024 in a position it knows well: for the first time since 2020, it will set out to defend the title. Saudi Arabia once again hosts the legendary race, which counts towards the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC).
The Austrian manufacturer will have two official riders: Kevin Benavides and Toby Price, who finished less than a minute away from victory in the previous edition. Matthias Walkner will be absent after suffering serious injuries in a training incident.
The team manager, Andreas Hölzl, ensured that everything is ready at KTM to attack Dakar 2024: ‘We are really looking forward to Dakar – the bikes are ready to go and from a technical point of view we are really well prepared. Of course Toby is highly motivated. He had a strong 2023 season and is in good shape, well trained, and totally focused on Dakar. Kevin, although not at 100% after a minor incident, also has his sights firmly set on success at Dakar. He is confident and should be close to full fitness at the start of the race in January‘.
Regarding Walkner, the manager stated: ‘He is expected to be transferred to Austria in the coming days for further surgery. It is certainly a painful injury that will take some time to heal properly. But the team fully supports him and we hope to see him back in racing as soon as possible‘.
