Key highlights
• Applications for Season 4 closed on December 13. 50 FIA cars were registered. That is, 24 Ultimate cars, 16 Challenger cars, and 10 SSVs.
• Dacia and Ford M-Sport join Toyota Gazoo Racing, Overdrive Racing and X-Raid to shake up the balance of power in automotive competition. Challenger and SSV titles can be earned after two current champions decide to move up the rankings.
• Innovative rules updates will add tension to the championship as the 47th Dakar begins over the next two weeks.
Find the full 2025 Dakar entry list here.
Dacia and Ford are fighting against Toyota and X-Ray.
Dacia Sandriders burst onto the scene with a three-pronged attack in the championship finale last October. Nasser Al Attiyah and Sébastien Loeb fired shots across the bow of their rivals to secure a one-two finish ahead of the 2025 season. The three-time world champion and 2022 runner-up performed well. Cristina Gutiérrez will race for their side.
Ford M-Sport fields four drivers in W2RC. Carlos Sainz, who started the season with his fourth Dakar win and finished in the top five, will be supported by fellow Spaniard Nani Roma, a Dakar winner on two wheels (2004) and four wheels (2014). Backing up these two rally raid legends on the U.S. roster are Mattias Ekström and Challenger class newcomer Mitch Guthrie Jr. X-raid has also recruited four drivers for the petrol-powered Mini 3.0i JCW. Guillaume de Mévius had a breakthrough performance in the 2024 season, finishing second overall in his first Ultimate class Dakar in competition for Overdrive Racing and third in the Rallye du Maroc. We got to know his new co-driver, two-time World Champion (2022 and 2023) Mathieu Baumel. The Red Devils will raise hell with Denis Krotov, Lionel Baud and 2024 World Baja Cup champion João Ferreira.
Toyota decided to make its impact by including seven Hilux drivers on its entry list. Three players will compete in Overdrive Racing, including two-time W2RC silver medalist (2023 and 2024) Yazeed Al Rajhi. Jean-Marc Fortin renewed the contract of third-placed Juan Cruz Yacopini for 2023 and brought in the precocious Rokas Baciuška. Rokas Baciuška brought him to the top of the SSV (2022 and 2023) and Challenger (2024) classes. Four Toyota Gazoo Racing factory drivers make up the rest of the contingent. Lucas Moraes, who achieved his first overall W2RC podium in 2024 after finishing on the Dakar podium in 2023, will share the same roof with Seth Quintero again. Saood Variawa begins his second W2RC season alongside fellow South African Henk Lategan.
In 2025, six hires will have outsider status: Mathieu Serradori (Century Racing Factory team), Martin Prokop (Orlen Jipocar team), Jean-Luc Ceccaldi (JLC Racing), Dave Klaassen (Daklapack Rallysport) and Guoyu. Zhang (Mintimes Yunxiang Rally Team) and W2RC rookie Daniel Schröder (PS Laser) Racing).
Toyota, a three-time manufacturer champion, now faces a fierce title defense as Dacia and Ford step into the ring.
Meanwhile, in the Challenger class, five structured teams and a few lone rangers will compete against each other to fill the power gap left by Rokas Baciuška’s promotion to Ultimate.
Yasir Seaidan hopes to continue SSV’s recent triumphs with a Challenger title in 2025. The Saudi was promoted to Team BBR, joining Baciuška’s runner-up Nicolás Cavigliasso and his navigator, 2024 champion Valentina Pertegarini. Dania Akeel, another Saudi who finished the 2024 season in the top five, will also be racing alongside him. Young Pau Navarro completes the French team that will field five Taurus T3 Max cars.
BFG’s mission for Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA: Quintero, Gutiérrez and Guthrie will all be factory drivers for the Ultimate class in 2025, while Guillaume de Mévius, who was also part of their structure, will also make it to the big leagues. A new generation of rally raid talent is emerging, led by two 23-year-old drivers. American Corbin Leaverton is a worthy successor to Quintero and Guthrie. The California native has already won several titles in the World Off Road Championship Series (WORCS) and the Best in the Desert (BITD) event held on the other side of the pond. Gonçalo Guerreiro, the 2022 Portuguese national cross-country champion and three-time winner of his class Baja Portalegre, will fly the flag for Europe.
Argentina’s David Zille will drive the Taurus (Daklapack Rallysport), as will Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA for Team BBR and BFG.
Nasser Al Attiyah is making waves with his debut for the team. Nasser Racing, backed by the Qatar Automobile and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF), will field a three-man crew. Khalifa Al Attiyah is another brother of Al Attiyah, who made his first international appearance at the 2021 Rally Andalusia. Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, titleholder of the Middle East Rally Championship (MERC), won 19 times by Nasser Al Attiyah; and Spaniard Eduard Pons, who won the World Baja Cup in the Challenger class this season (3rd overall).
G Rally Team and Franco Sport follow the adage “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The team founded by Guillaume de Mévius will continue to rely on Rui Carneiro and another female driver in the class, Puck Klaassen. Meanwhile, the Portuguese team with Yamaha cars featured Mario Franco and Pedro Gonçalves. Emirati Khalid Aljafla (Aljafla Racing) and Pole Adam Kuś (Akpol Recykling), who finished on the podium in the 2024 World Baja Cup Challenger class (fifth overall), will also join the caravan.
Seaidan’s Challenger promotion in the SSV class is fueling the American dream! Sara Price, who recently finished second overall at the 46th Dakar in international competition, is full of ambition after becoming a Can-Am Factory driver. Scott Abraham’s South Racing team is focusing on the SSV class with the Argentine triumvirate based on the new Can-Am Maverick R. SSV World Baja Cup champion (2nd overall), Fernando Álvarez, Quad World Cup champion Manuel Andújar, and Diego Martinez. Italy is pinning its hopes on quantity and experience. In 2024, two top-10 Italians return to Polaris. Enrico Gaspari (TH Trucks) and Michele Antonio Cinotto (CST XtremePlus Polaris Team). German Roger Grouwels (Raceart), Portuguese Alexandre Pinto (winner of the Road to Dakar Challenge at Rallye du Maroc) and Spaniard Carlos Vento (Old Friends Rally Team) are all set to make their debuts. Claude Fournier (MMP), the granddad of the W2RC house, has no intention of missing a single championship round!
rule changes
Rule changes for the 2025 season will result in more points being awarded to highlight different aspects of competitors’ skills.
– Starter and Finisher Points: The top 15 riders in a rally format round will continue to earn 30, 25, 20, 17, 15, 13, 11, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 points . , now starting in 16th place, all classified competitors will be awarded an additional 2 points, and unclassified competitors will be awarded 1 point. For marathon events (over 5 stages) such as the Dakar, certain point scales (50, 40, 30, 26, 23, 20, 17, 15, 13, 11, 9, 7, 6, 5, 4) are doubled. It increases. Additional points: 4 points for classified competitors ranked 16th or higher, 2 points for unclassified competitors.
– Power Selection Section: Held at the end of the rally, this final sprint lasts between 5 and 30 km and awards 3, 2 and 1 points respectively to the three fastest crews in each class. Power selection sections will be recommended to organizers in 2025 and mandatory in 2026.
– Manufacturer Stage Points: Depending on the stage points model awarded for individual performance (driver and co-driver) at every stage of the rally, the five fastest cars nominated by the manufacturer to represent them will score between 5 and 1 point.
2025 calendar
