“I need to prove that I also have the consistency”
RIDER FACTS
- Michael Docherty started racing motorcycles at the tender age of 6 and at 8 won the South Africa National 65cc Championship. Since then, he has had considerable success in the discipline, racing in the States, Europe and the Middle East.
- Dubai based these last 8 years, he entered his first rally-raid, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge in 2021, going on to win the Rally 2 class. He was back again in 2022 and won the prologue and the first stage before crashing out on Day 2.
- In 2023, with help from SRG Motorsports in Dubai and HT Rally Raid he finally got himself to the Dakar. On day 3 he dislocated his wrist but still went on to win 4 stages in Rally 2, finish 3rd of the category and win the Best Rookie award.
- The Dakar 2024 should have been the edition where it all came together for Michael but instead, he ended up in the helicopter on Day 2. He was back for the Abu Dhabi Challenge and won Day 1 before taking another helicopter ride on Day 2, this time with a fractured hip!
- After such a disastrous year, October’s Rallye du Maroc was make or break time. Happily, for the introspective South African, his race went according to plan, with a third place in Rally 2 while running with the big boys (Rally GP) to finish 10th overall.
2025 AMBITIONS
“It's been a very difficult year, with too many crashes and too many injuries. I think if I hadn’t been able to finish the 2024 Rallye du Maroc we would have had to have a serious look at the future. As it was, the last round of the W2RC went pretty much according to plan and once again I showed I had the pace. Now I really have to get a solid finish on the 2025 Dakar. Finding the budget to race rally-raid as a privateer isn’t easy and not sustainable in the long term. The problem is that to attract a factory ride you have to show your worth and that means pushing the envelope, with the risks that entails. I think now all the decision makers know I have the speed. What I need to prove to them is that I also have the consistency. Hopefully a solid 2025 Dakar with a win in Rally 2 and a Top 10 Overall result will unlock a few doors.
