“The Dakar is the ultimate annual offroad motorsport event”

Mike Wiedemann may only be 23 years old, but it feels like he has been gearing up for his maiden Dakar for a long time. He got his first bike, a Yamaha PW50, as a present from his dad on his fourth birthday. After spending several years helping out at his old man’s races, he began participating himself in 2010, coming 10th in the Junior class at an Enduro X Cup race. He has gone on to compete in a variety of offroad events, including the German enduro and cross-country championships, the International Six Days Enduro, and the Le Touquet beach race. A few years ago, he set his sights on the Dakar, which he describes as ‘the mother of all desert rallies’. Born in 1998 -the year Stephane Peterhansel won the last of his six bike titles- he is set to become the rally’s youngest ever German participant. Mike has been training hard over the past few seasons, and after losing a couple of major sponsors due to the ongoing pandemic, he managed to raise funds through GoFundMe and PayPal.Me campaigns. In the months leading up to his first Dakar, he travelled to Spain for training with KTM rally sport manager Jordi Viladoms, before coming 11th in the Rally 2 class at the Morocco Rally. Two of the riders on the Rally 2 podium in Morocco, Mason Klein (1st) and Bradley Cox (3rd), will be sharing the BAS Dakar stand with Mike at Dakar 2022. With Bart van der Velden and his team providing their usual excellent service -not to mention a top-notch KTM 450 Rally Replica- Germany's next big thing in rally raid has every chance of going all the way on his debut.

“Two years ago, I set myself the Dakar as my most important motorsport goal, and in January 2022 I'll be starting in Saudi Arabia. Without a doubt, the Dakar is the ultimate annual offroad motorsport event. No other race puts the fans and media under its spell like the mother of all desert rallies. This myth is based on a combination of impressive racing distance and physical and mental demands. For three years now, I've been preparing intensively for my biggest goal, which is taking part in the Dakar. I've done rallies in Morocco, special training in Spain and intensive physical workouts. I'm firmly convinced that I’ve given everything to cross the finish line at the Dakar. I'm ready!”