34th ABU DHABI DESERT CHALLENGE GEARS UP FOR EMPTY QUARTER REMATCH
– Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge set to test world’s top rally-raid crews across stunning, innovative route for 34th edition
– Round 2 of the globe’s most demanding motorsport discipline, the FIA/FIM World Rally-Raid Championship, takes competitors deep into the Empty Quarter
– Driven to deliver, DHL Global Forwarding overcomes logistical demands in the toughest conditions of the Desert Challenge as Official Logistics Partner
Abu Dhabi, UAE, 13 February, 2025: It’s less than ten days to go until the most challenging motorsport series, the FIA/FIM World Rally-Raid Championship, (W2RC), returns to the UAE for the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Sitting as the second round of the W2RC season, drivers and riders must prepare for the towering dunes of the Empty Quarter in an epic rematch steeped with history.
The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, founded in 1991 by 14-time Middle East Rally Champion and current FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, came along to shake up the world of cross-country rally. Since then, the event has grown to become a desert classic in rally-raid, revered by fans and competitors alike for its incredible landscapes, gruelling stages, and gripping action.
The growing success of rally-raid coupled with the spectacular nature of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge’s towering dunes attracts a world-class international entry list. Ten different nationalities have won the Desert Challenge bike class to date, compared to eight in the cars.
The 2025 edition (21-27 February) will be no exception, with almost 165 competitors, including cars, bikes and quads, entered for this year’s event, from nearly 30 different countries.
So many cars, bikes, teams, competitors, officials and freight in the remote wilderness of the Abu Dhabi desert is no easy task to manage, but event organisers the Emirates Motorsport Organisation (EMSO) is aided in the mammoth logistical challenge by Official Logistics Partner, DHL Global Forwarding.
With five stages and a bivouac that will host around a thousand people across an area equivalent to 10 football fields, logistics is of paramount importance for an event as extensive as the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. A tight schedule makes the precision of strong-minded partners key, and this is where DHL Global Forwarding comes into play, having signed a long-term agreement with the EMSO.
DHL Global Forwarding, the leading international provider of air, ocean, and road freight services, has been invaluable in preparing this year’s Desert Challenge, expertly facilitating the transportation of the W2RC caravan from Saudi Arabia to Abu Dhabi. Following what promises to be a dramatic conclusion to the Desert Challenge, DHL will co-ordinate the shift to the next stop on the W2RC championship schedule – the all-new South African Safari Rally in May – before managing the logistical challenges of the final two rounds – the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal in September and the season-ending Rallye du Maroc in October.
Amadou Diallo, CEO DHL Global Forwarding Middle East & Africa, said: “DHL is a committed partner to the Emirates Motorsport Organisation and, along with the Dubai International Baja in November, we are pleased to be involved with the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge as one of the world’s greatest cross-country events.”
“The Desert Challenge is one of motorsport’s most complex events, but it’s a logistical challenge we are hugely excited to take on. We have already helped expedite the border crossing for cars, bikes and equipment coming from Saudi Arabia, and are now facilitating the arrival of freight from Holland, Spain and Argentina to be ready for the start of the Desert Challenge in Al Ain.”
H.E. Khalid Bin Sulayem, EMSO President, said: “This year’s Desert Challenge is incredibly dynamic in terms of the number, quality and diversity of competitors travelling to Abu Dhabi. As well as the caravan coming from Round 1 of the series, Rally Dakar, we have competitors and equipment coming from all four corners of the globe and getting all of that in place for the start is a massive logistical challenge.
“To ensure that happens we need a reliable and efficient partner, and that’s why we place our trust in DHL Global Forwarding, our Official Logistics Partner. From shipping, to customs, and warehousing to getting everything in place for the event’s first ever start in Al Ain, DHL has been faultless.”
The 34th edition of the Desert Challenge is set to be one of the most spectacular ever. After a fog-curtailed penultimate stage denied many a satisfying finish at the season-opening Dakar Rally, the Desert Challenge’s spectacular new route will see rematches between rivals deep in the daunting Rub’ al Khali across ergs reaching as high as 300 metres.Three factory teams – Toyota Gazoo Racing, the Dacia Sandriders, and Ford M-Sport – are full time entries in W2RC’s top Ultimate car class and, accompanied by an incredible array of smaller classes and privateer entries, the 34th Desert Challenge is shaping up to be one of the most hotly contested in its long history.
Indeed, below the Ultimate car class, the Challenger (Lightweight Prototypes) and SSV (lightly modified production vehicle) car categories have not only succeeded in greatly boosting entry numbers, but they have also brought through a whole new generation of top talent.
The bike category also benefits from a healthy attendance. The reigning World Champions, Indian manufacturer Hero Motorsports, and the traditional desert kings, Redbull KTM Factory Racing and Team Monster Honda HRC, make up the three main factory teams amongst a growing number of additional regional competitors.With the logistical challenges overcome and the event now well into final preparations, the stage is set for another epic adventure and what promises to be the most thrilling Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge yet.
The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler’s Representative Court in Al Dhafra Region. Supported by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, the event is organized by the Emirates Motorsports Organization. The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge also counts with the support of Energy Partner ADNOC Distribution, the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi and other governmental entities. E& is the Technology Partner of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, while DHL Global Forwarding is the event’s Official Logistics Partner.
