Qualifying for the Dakar has always been a contentious issue. The Dakar is owned by the ASO, Amaury Sport Organisation, a French company that owns, designs, and organizes prestigious sporting events, primarily focusing on "non-stadium" events.
Founded in 1992, the ASO organizes over 90 events in 30 countries, totaling 250 days of competition per year.
Originally, anyone could sign up for the Dakar. Then it changed to a system where you had to apply for permission to participate in the Dakar Rally by sending in a race CV and a motivation letter explaining why you would like to compete in the Dakar.
As more rally raids emerged, the organization capped motorcycle entries at around 130 due to logistical challenges. Preference in the selection process was given to those who had competed in another ASO/FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) events, making it the norm to do a qualifying race, which was an ASO event, to secure entry to the Dakar Rally.
In October 2023, the selection criteria changed to a new points-based system. In an interview I had with the ASO they explained that they aim to foster a rally community, encouraging long-term rally riders to participate in multiple events, and enhance safety by allowing higher-caliber riders with more experience to enter the Dakar.
I guess this can be compared to Everest, and avoiding what has happened there with the influx of people that are not necessarily mountaineers, climbing Everest just to say they conquered the highest mountain in the world. So in a way, might the ASO be trying to preserve the Dakar for bona fide rally riders?
For the 2024 edition, they had over 200 applicants and had to choose 130. The points-based system will certainly make the selection process easier for them. The riders with the most points get accepted to compete in the race.
Despite accumulating enough points, applicants still need to apply, write a motivation letter, and submit a race CV. Rally GP riders are exempt from the points system, comprising roughly 30 riders. Additionally, the ASO reserves entries for "special projects," bypassing the points system.
In essence, 130 riders, minus 30 GP riders, minus an undisclosed number of "special project" riders, leaves around 90 riders competing for a Dakar entry. The points system remains crucial for these 90 riders.
The following section provides a detailed description of how the new points and selection process work.
So, how does the points system work?
1. Eligibility criteria for the Dakar 2025 selection process
To be eligible to take part in the Dakar 2025 rally, riders must meet at least one of the following conditions
• To have taken part in at least one Road to Dakar race in the two years preceding the selection date, July 15, 2024 (i.e. between July 2022 and July 2024).
The Road to Dakar is a series of races whose format and level of difficulty meet the Dakar selection criteria. Participating in several of these races increases a rider's chances of selection. Consult the Road to Dakar calendar on competitors.dakar.com to find out which races have been awarded the Road to Dakar label.
OR
• To have taken part in at least one Dakar rally in the five years preceding the selection date, July 15, 2024 (i.e. from Dakar 2020 inclusive to Dakar 2024).
2. Selection Process
All candidates (except RallyGP) are invited to fill in a selection questionnaire when opening the registration file. It will provide the organizer with information about their experience.
The points scale below will be applied to the riders' track record and will be used to assess their level of experience according to the races in which they have taken part.
To be awarded points for a race, riders must have taken part in and finished that race (provide rankings).
Awarding of bonus points:
Riders who finish within 1.3 to 1.5 times (depending on the rally) the time of the Rally2 category winner will be awarded 3 bonus points.
This bonus is only applicable to WaR rounds and Road to Dakar races run from July 2022.
"Rookies" (riders who have never taken part in the Dakar Rally) must, in addition to the questionnaire, send a file presenting their Dakar project to the ASO.
This file must include the following information:
Rider's project (history, motivations, objectives, organization)
Level of regular bike riding (leisure and competition)
Track record in Bike and other sports (Copy of rankings)
Whether or not attached to a support team
Rider promotion (Communication/Visibility)
Physical fitness through sports (excluding rally-raid)
3. Selection of the application
Selection is based on an overall assessment of riders' skills, experience, and ability to cope with the technical and physical challenges of the race.
The following criteria will be taken into consideration:
riders' level of experience, in particular through the number of points obtained in the selection questionnaire
The riders' fitness, through rally-raid and other sports.
The riders' project, through their story, their motivations, their objectives for the race and their promotion.
Only the Dakar Rally Selection Committee can decide on the admission of candidates. It reserves the right, at its own discretion, to accept or refuse any entry.
RallyGP riders (riders on the FIM RallyGP list) are exempt from the selection process.
So how many points do you need to qualify for Dakar?
As per the ASO, there is no specific amount of points you need, and they reserve the right to choose whomever they deem worthy under the “special project” category.
However, for the majority of riders, it would seem, based on my research and calculations, to be in the running, you are going to need around 20 points.
So there you have it, a clear and concise layout of how the new Dakar points system works.
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