Last year’s Dakar was very successful for the Czech colors. The race went perfectly well for the Czech trucks – Martin Macík dominated the entire competition ahead of the second Aleš Lopraise. Among the cars, Martin Prokop shined with the fifth place, who recorded the Czech maximum. The best Czech result was also equaled by motorcyclist Martin Michek when he finished tenth.
All those named above are also participating in the upcoming year of the race, and the Czech fan certainly has something to look forward to.
Program and stages of the Dakar Rally 2025
| Stage | Date | Route (km overall/speed test) |
|---|---|---|
| prologue | Friday, January 3 | Biša–Biša (79 km/29 km) RESULTS |
| 1. | Saturday, January 4 | Biša–Biša (500 km/412 km) RESULTS |
| 2. | Sunday, January 5 – Monday, January 6 | Biša–Biša (1057 km/965 km) ONLINE |
| 3. | Tuesday, January 7 | Biša–Hinakjá (845 km/ 496 km) |
| 4. | Wednesday, January 8 | Hinakjá–Ula (588 km/415 km) |
| 5. | Thursday, January 9 | Úla–Háil (491 km/428 km) |
| – | Friday, January 10 | free day |
| 6. | Saturday, January 11 | Háil–Davadmi (829 km/606 km) |
| 7. | Sunday, January 12 | Davadmi–Davadmi (745 km/481 km) |
| 8. | Monday, January 13 | Davadmi–Riyadh (733 km/487 km) |
| 9. | Tuesday, January 14 | Riyadh–Harat (589 km/357 km) |
| 10. | Wednesday, January 15 | Harat–Shubajta (638 km/119 km) |
| 11. | Thursday, January 16 | Šubajta–Šubajta (506 km/280 km) |
| 12. | Friday, January 17 | Šubajtá–Šubajtá (205 km/134 km) |
Just like last year, 12 stages await the competitors, one of which is a long, two-day one. This time it is set for the third and fourth day. After the fifth stage, there will be a free day before the second half of the race.
Dakar Rally 2025 route map
In total, the route, starting in the town of Biša and ending in Šubajtá, will measure more than 7,700 kilometers, of which over 5,100 kilometers will be special stages. There are thus 400 kilometers more measured sections than in January 2024.
The race will start on Friday, January 3 in the southwest of the country in the city of Biša. Just like last year, a 48-hour stage awaits the participants, which will take place on the third and fourth day northeast of Biša. Further, the route leads north to the ancient city of Úla, where the last year started, and then through Háil and the capital Riyadh to the eastern border to Šubajtá, where the entire race will end on Friday, January 17.
Czechs at the Dakar Rally 2025
As is traditional, Czech participation in the Dakar will be abundant in 2025 as well. Eight motorcyclists, two car crews, seven truck crews and six crews in the Classic category. The well-known singer Olga Lounová, who will be a part of Aleš Lopraise’s team and will act as a navigator for Tatra 815 driver Igor Pazder, will also ride in it.
| Start list – Czechs |
|---|
| Motorcycles |
| Martin Michek, Jan Brabec, Milan Engel, Martin Prokeš, David Pabiška, Jiří Brož, Dušan Drdaj, Jaromír Romančík (all KTM), Adam Peschel (Husqvarna). |
| A classic |
| Barbora Holická, Lucie Engová (Citroën 2CV); Ondřej Martinec, Jiří Kopřiva (Toyota Land Cruiser); Jiří Bárta, Petr Švec (Mitsubishi Pajero); Jan Vinš, Filip Bajora (Mitsubishi Pajero); Igor Pazdera, Olga Lounová, Milan Holáň (Tatra 815); Jiří Husek, Lubomír Dočkal, Dominik Holáň (Tatra 815). |
| Cars |
| Martin Prokop, Viktor Chytka (Ford); Karel Trněný, Václav Pritzl (Ford). |
| Trucks |
| Martin Macík, František Tomášek, David Švanda (Iveco); Aleš Loprais, David Křípal, Darek Rodewald/Pol. (Iveco); Martin Šoltys, Tomáš Šikola, Vlastimil Miksch (Tatra); Tomáš Vrátný, Jaromír Martinec, Bartlomiej Boba/Pol. (Tatra); Karel Posledni, Lukáš Kvasnica, Filip Škrobánek (Tatra); Dušan Randysek, Victor Bouchwalder/Fr., Laurent Lalanne/Fr. (MAN); Tomáš Tomeček, Ard Munster/Netherlands, Niccolo Funaioli/It. (Tatra). |
Where to watch the Dakar Rally 2025 on TV
Also in the upcoming year 2025, TV Nova will take care of the transmission. He will offer daily summaries from the plant on his Nova Action channel and on the Voyo internet platform for 159 crowns per month. Another alternative to watch is Eurosport pay television.
Sport.cz will traditionally bring online reports from individual stages. On the official website of the plant, it is possible to use the so-called livetracking with current times and notes from the race in English.
History and interesting facts about Dakar
The most demanding endurance off-road race has a history of almost half a century. At the instigation of the French motorcycle racer Thierry Sabine, who was based on his life-threatening experiences in Africa, a race was created in 1978 that was supposed to guarantee the safety of everyone involved. The original route was from Paris to Dakar with an interruption during the transfer across the Mediterranean Sea.
Karel Loprais is one of the most important Czech personalities of the Dakar. He was able to win the demanding race in the truck category even six times, in 1988, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999 and 2001.
