“When I got my first bike at 5, my goal was to race the Dakar!”

Sebastian Bühler has been a fan of the Dakar for almost as long as he can remember. Born in Duisburg to German parents, the 26-year-old has spent most of his life in Portugal. As a boy, he used to watch the world's biggest rally setting off from Lisbon. He started riding a bike at the age of just five, and by 13 he was entering his first races. Having enjoyed great success at the Portuguese all-terrain (TT) championship -ending up on the podium in five consecutive years- Sebastian decided to branch out into rally raid, claiming impressive results at the Merzouga and Panafrica Rallies. He enjoyed a very successful Dakar debut in 2019, finishing in the top 20 and as the third-best rookie. However, Dakar 2020 proved to be a far more sobering experience. Sebastian was forced to abandon with a broken engine on Stage 6, before teammate Paulo Gonçalves tragically lost his life on Stage 7, plunging the entire Dakar family into mourning. Hero Motosports withdrew the rest of their riders the following day, but they will be back at Dakar 2021 looking to honour Paulo's memory. Sebastian has managed to do some racing this year in spite of the global pandemic, winning a curtailed FIM Bajas World Cup and going up against the elites at the Andalucia Rally. After a difficult first experience of Saudi Arabia, his objective is simply to reach the finish line and do the best possible job for his team.

“I started racing at the age of 13, and I have never stopped since. When I got my first bike as a five-year-old, my goal was already to race the Dakar! I was very happy with my result at Dakar 2019, but last year's rally was really difficult. It was the first time in Saudi Arabia and everything was new, with difficult terrain and hard conditions. And of course the passing away of my friend and teammate Paulo was a big shock. It was very hard for all of us, but I will continue to race for my friend Speedy, and I'm sure he will be looking down at us and will be proud. Overall the Andalucia Rally was good, although the final result was not what I was aiming for. Apart from that I was able to do some national races here in Portugal and some competitions counting towards the Baja World Cup. My goal, our goal, is to be as regular as possible and to reach the finish line with the best possible result.”