Rally Raid
We're off around the globe with the World Rally-Raid Championship to decide who are the best rally-raiders on two and four wheels.
The 2022 season is a turning point in the history of rally-raid, as the sport kicks off a new world championship era. The action is already underway with precious championship points on offer at last month's Dakar Rally. As we approach the second stop of the season at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, let's get fully up to speed with the World Rally-Raid Championship.
01
What is the World Rally-Raid Championship?
The unification of the FIA and FIM World Championships, consisting of five rounds in their new format, gives rally-raid a fresh start in 2022. Rally-raid's unique and harmonious blend of the spirit of adventure, extreme endurance, navigation and technical performance turns this sport into an exceptional spectacle for competitors and fans alike.
The inclusion of the Dakar Rally in a season-long competition offers a historic opportunity to unify the regulations of the sport and, at the same time, raise its profile year-round. After getting the show on the road in Saudi Arabia in January, the competition now heads to the UAE in March, Kazakhstan in April, Andalusia in June and Morocco in October, setting the stage for ferocious battles with rider, driver, co-driver and constructor titles at stake.
02
How are the points dished out?
- FIA points scale for Marathon events (two week rallies such as the Dakar)...
- General standings, points awarded to the top 15 competitors: (50, 40, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2).
- Stage classification, points awarded to the top 5 competitors: (5, 4, 3, 2 and 1).
- FIA points scale for Rally events (one week rallies)...
- General standings, points awarded to the top 15 competitors: (30, 25, 20, 17, 15, 13, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2).
- Stage classification, points awarded to the top 5 competitors: (5, 4, 3, 2 and 1).
- The FIM points scale strongly emphasises consistency over raw speed, so there's no points for stage results.
- General standings, points awarded to the top 15 competitors: (25, 20, 16, 13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1).
- A coefficient of 1.5 is applied to Marathon events.
03
What's the state of play after the Dakar?
In the T1 car category, the early championship leader is Nasser Al-Attiyah. The Qatari drove his Toyota Hilux T1+ to victory at the Dakar and now sits on 85 championship points (50 points for the win and a further 35 for stage results). Sébastien Loeb is just a point behind Al-Attiyah in second place following the BRX Hunter driver's runners-up result at the Dakar, for which he scored 40 points for second place, and a further 44 for stage results.
Stage results have also had a big impact on the early T3 category leaderboards. Seth Quintero picked up just eight points for finishing the Dakar as the championship's ninth-best driver. However, the teenage American added an extra 55 points to his total thanks to 11 stage wins. Quintero is third overall in the T3 rankings, 10 points behind fellow Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team driver Cristina Gutiérrez. Dakar winner Francisco 'Chaleco' Lopez is a further 14 points ahead of Gutiérrez in top spot.
In the bike race, the field is led by GasGas Factory rider Sam Sunderland, thanks to his second Dakar victory. Then comes Honda's Pablo Quintanilla in second and Matthias Walkner of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing in third place.
Listen below to an immersive audio experience from the 2022 Dakar Rally...
04
What’s next for rally-raid's premier championship?
The second stop on the World Rally-Raid Championship is the always tough Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. A ceremonial start at the famous Yas Marina Circuit is followed by five days racing over the sands of the Liwa Desert. The rally's ceremonial start takes place on Saturday, March 5 and the chequered flags falls on Thursday, March 10.
In recent years the bike race has been won by Sunderland, Quintanilla and Walkner, so the FIM division's leading trio will all fancy their chances in Abu Dhabi. Meanwhile, the reigning T1 car category champions are Al-Attiyah and co-driver Mathieu Baumel (who also leads the championship's co-driver category after his latest Dakar win).
