Photo: Flavien Duhamel/Red Bull Content Pool
Toby Price, the reigning alien of the Dakar rally, has confirmed a contract extension with KTM, theoretically creating a stranglehold on the race for years to come.
For years, KTM has dominated at Dakar. In 2001, Fabrizio Meoni gave KTM its first Dakar victory aboard an LC4 660R; since then, KTM has won the overall motorcycle category every single Dakar rally, usually not just taking first place, but also dominating the podium and the top 10 spots in the standings. Even after organizers switched to a 450 cc engine limit in 2011, a move perceived by many as an attempt to end the KTM win streak, the orange bikes kept on bringing home the hardware, with the dynamic 1-2 punch of Cyril Despres and Marc Coma seemingly unbeatable by anyone except each other.
When Despres moved to Yamaha, he was still unable to get past Coma, who remained with KTM. When Coma left KTM to work with the rally organization, it looked like there was an opportunity for another manufacturer to pressure KTM (particularly Honda), but Toby Price’s astonishing performance in 2016 proved otherwise. In only his second Dakar, Price won Stages 2,5,6,8 and 9 and ended with a 40-minute lead in the standings. He finished third overall in the FIM’s world rally series. This Aussie is the real deal, and appears to be able to pick up where Despres and Coma left off.
So, KTM’s doing the smart thing and keeping him signed on through 2019. That doesn’t guarantee the factory team will win this winter’s race, but it does guarantee it has the world’s best rally raid rider (sorry, Pablo Quintanilla — you still haven’t won the Dakar).
We have not seen any financial details for the Price/KTM deal.
The rest of KTM’s factory team is still fairly strong this year as well. Sam Sunderland has been confirmed to return. The unlucky Brit had to sit out the 2016 race due to injury, but he’s proven he’s capable of winning individual stages at Dakar. A full race aboard a good bike will show what he is really capable of doing.
Matthias Walkner, who impressed many in 2016, is back, and Ivan Ramirez (a hotshot in AMA offroad racing) has been confirmed as well. And on the women’s side, Laia Sanz returns. She’s been the top female at Dakar, passing many of the boys along the way, and she’s likely to challenge for a top-10 position again this season.
