With the dust barely settled after last month’s Dakar Rally, the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) fires back into life this weekend. The 2025 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (ADDC) features a convoy full of Dakar contenders on the hunt for glory at the W2RC’s second round.
The action starts with a Prologue Stage on Saturday, February 22 around the UAE’s Garden City of Al Ain. Then come five gruelling days of racing through the Liwa Desert and over the sand dunes of the notorious Empty Quarter. The 34th ADDC will also visit a Marathon Stage bivouac under the incredible night sky of Al Qua’a. After 2,000 kilometres of stunning landscapes and gripping action, the chequered flag will finally fly in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, February 27.
In the Ultimate car class there’s a rematch between the Toyota, Ford, Dacia and MINI machines that clashed at the Dakar Rally in January. Mattias Ekström parked his Ford Raptor T1+ on the podium at the V8-powered car’s debut Dakar, behind the Toyotas of Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Henk Lategan. Now Ekström, with fellow Swede Emil Bergkvist in the co-driver’s seat, is motivated by another chance to race his Raptor.
« The second week of Dakar was dunes so I look forward to coming back to dunes again, to finetune our Ford Raptor T1+ to be even better, and to keep the Dakar momentum going and fight for the top at ADDC. » – Mattias Ekström
Joining Ekström in the UAE will be his Ford M-Sport team-mates Mitch Guthrie Jr. and co-driver Kellon Walch. This all-American duo scored fifth place overall as they debuted a new car while competing together for the first time in the Ultimate class. Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team graduate Guthrie Jr. is currently joint fifth in the W2RC rankings with four races remaining.
« After a strong Dakar and more seat time in the Ford Raptor T1+, I feel confident and I’m looking for a good result. » – Mitch Guthrie Jr.
Also taking the covers off a new car at the Dakar last month were the Dacia Sandriders. Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Edouard Boulanger picked up a pair of stage wins in Saudi Arabia on their way to finishing fourth overall. Al-Attiyah is a three-time winner of the W2RC plus a four-time winner of the ADDC. Now the Qatari is targeting even more success in the UAE.
« The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is my favourite rally and we have a lot of experience of this type of terrain. After Dakar we are really well prepared to fight in Abu Dhabi and to lead the world championship. » – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Nine-time WRC winner Sébastien Loeb arrives in Al Ain with a point to prove after his last Dakar ended prematurely due to a damaged rollcage. Loeb and navigator Fabian Lurquin need to pick up plenty of points at this next rally to get back into the championship conversation.
« I’m really happy to be back in the car after a frustrating Dakar, which ended far too early for us after we showed a lot of potential early on. The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is always a special rally with a lot of big dunes. » – Sébastien Loeb
Toyota Gazoo Racing are represented at the ADDC by the race crews of Lucas Moraes/Armand Monleón and Seth Quintero/Dennis Zenz. Consistency across all five stops of the W2RC last season from these duos delivered TGR another Manufacturers’ title. This season both Moraes and Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team alumni Quintero are targeting their first-ever Ultimate class wins.
« I’ve improved my pace a lot in the dunes so I’m confident that we can put up a good fight for the win. » – Lucas Moraes
Also driving in the Ultimate class is Guillaume de Mévius, a stage winner at the most recent Dakar. Xavier Panseri will read pacenotes for De Mévius in their MINI.
The entire Red Bull Desert Wings family send our best wishes to De Mévius’s regular co-driver, four-time Dakar winner Mathieu Baumel. The French navigator was seriously injured in a recent car accident. We are certain that Mathieu will succeed in his mission of making a return to racing at the 2026 Dakar Rally.
On two wheels the year so far belongs to one rider, Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders. A phenomenal ride on his KTM 450 Rally at the last Dakar saw Sanders pick up five stage victories on his way to an overall win. The target now for the Australian biker is to back up his first-ever Dakar win with victory in the W2RC.
« Winning the Dakar was a massive accomplishment. For the team, my family, friends, my girlfriend and everyone who’s seen me undergo all the lows and highs along the way. » – Daniel Sanders
Sanders returns to the Middle East after his Dakar success along with fellow Red Bull KTM Factory Racing riders Luciano Benavides and Edgar Canet. This year Luciano is out to recapture the W2RC crown he won in 2023. Luciano’s older brother Kevin Benavides will not race in Abu Dhabi as he continues his rehab from injury.
Teenage rider Canet shocked the Dakar bivouac with an eighth place overall result and the Rally2 title on his Dakar debut. The talented youngster from Catalonia now wants to build on his accomplishments in Saudi Arabia.
« Eighth overall, that’s crazy for me! Now I’m going to keep on working and I know what to improve. » – Edgar Canet
Also onboard KTM machinery at the latest ADDC will be Mohammed Balooshi. The 2024 Bajas World Cup winner can expect plenty of home support as he races across the deserts of his native UAE.
« It’s a good experience when you get to ride for five or six days among amazing dunes. [The ADDC] has a rich history, and I would say it’s the second biggest event after Dakar Rally. » – Mohammed Balooshi
In the Challenger class Pau Navarro has the chance to close the gap between himself and category leader Nicolás Cavigliasso in the W2RC rankings. Navarro made his Challenger class debut at this year’s Dakar and finished an impressive third overall. The Spaniard will be back in his Taurus T3 Max, this time with co-driver Jan Rosa i Viñas.
Also arriving to Al Ain with plenty of momentum is Saudi Arabian racer Dania Akeel. The overall result Akeel wanted at the previous Dakar may have eluded her, but that didn’t stop her making yet more history in her homeland. Setting the fastest Challenger time between Haradh and Shubaytah saw Akeel become the fourth female to win a Dakar stage, joining Jutta Kleinschmidt, Cristina Gutiérrez and Sara Price in the history books. Akeel will race her Taurus T3 Max alongside co-driver Stéphane Duplé at the ADDC.
« I’m excited to be back in the Taurus after the Dakar Rally and to be heading to Abu Dhabi for another experience in the Empty Quarter. » – Dania Akeel
Exceptional off-road talents are taking on the towering sand dunes of the Liwa and Empty Quarter deserts at this 34th edition of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Engines will roar into life for a Prologue Stage on Saturday, February 22. Then come five desert stages measuring a combined 2,000 kilometres. The winners of the W2RC’s second stop of the season will be crowned in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, February 27.
The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is supported by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and organised by the EMSO (Emirates Motorsports Organization). One of the original hosts of the W2RC, this rally maintains its spot as the second round of the championship following the season-opening Dakar Rally.