Entries are open for the Sonora Rally 2027. The organiser has announced the rally for 11 to 14 February 2027 (Thursday to Sunday) in San Luis Río Colorado, in the Mexican state of Sonora. Three competitive days and a single central bivouac, meaning one fixed base for the whole event, are planned. According to the organiser, motorcyclists can earn six points towards Dakar qualification there.
What the organiser has announced
On 15 October 2026, the Sonora Rally posted “SONORA RALLY 2027 — ENTRIES ARE OPEN” on its Instagram channel, meaning that entries are open. On 17 October it repeated the announcement in another post. According to both posts, entries are made via www.sonorarally.com. The key details from the organiser’s posts:
- Date: 11 to 14 February 2027
- Location: San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, “just across the U.S. border” according to the organiser
- Format: three competitive days, one central bivouac, Dakar-style navigation
- Motorcycles: 6 Dakar qualification points (“Dakar eligibility points”)
- UTV: “Road to Dakar” prize in the form of a paid entry to the Dakar 2028
- Early bird: the first 25 entries save 200 US dollars
The posts do not say under what conditions a motorcyclist receives the points. Chasing Waypoints writes that they go to “eligible moto finishers”, meaning eligible riders who reach the finish. This post does not make clear who counts as eligible either. The posts reviewed also give no entry fees, stage lengths or total distance. For former participants, the organiser announces “something extra” without saying what that means.
Rally school and dune course with Skyler Howes
Further dates appear only in posts by the rally outlet Chasing Waypoints, from 15 and 16 October 2026. They do not appear in the organiser’s posts that were reviewed. According to Chasing Waypoints, a Rally School will take place from 4 to 6 December 2026. On Friday 4 December there is also due to be a new dune course with Dakar rider Skyler Howes, limited to 8 places. The posts do not say where the two courses will be held or what they cost.
The value of the UTV prize also comes only from Chasing Waypoints. According to the outlet, the best eligible UTV team wins a paid entry to the Dakar 2028 worth more than 33,000 US dollars. The organiser gives no amount in its posts.
From the Cortez Rally to a Road to Dakar event
Chasing Waypoints has also summarised the history: in 2015 the event started as the Cortez Rally. A year later it became the Sonora Rally, which was then included in the Dakar’s “Road to Dakar” programme. In 2023 it was a round of the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC). With three competitive days and a single bivouac, the 2027 rally is going “back to its roots”, the post says.
As examples, Chasing Waypoints names Skyler Howes, Sara Price and Francisco Álvarez. All three, it says, found their way to the Dakar via the Sonora Rally’s Road to Dakar programme. Two-time Dakar winner Ricky Brabec is said to have won the Sonora Rally three times in a row. Darren Skilton, according to Chasing Waypoints a co-founder of the Sonora Rally and the Dakar’s representative in North America, is quoted in the post.
Sources and image credits
- Sonora Rally (@sonorarally), Instagram: “THE WAIT IS OVER.”, 15 October 2026
- Sonora Rally (@sonorarally), Instagram: “Some places stay with you long after the finish line.”, 17 October 2026
- Chasing Waypoints (@chasingwaypoints), Instagram: “Dakar bound? It starts in Sonora.”, 15 October 2026
- Chasing Waypoints (@chasingwaypoints), Instagram: “Dakar bound? It starts in Sonora.”, 16 October 2026
- Photo: motorcycle rally rider with number 10 on a sand dune (archive image). Rights holder: Sonora Rally (@sonorarally), photographer not named. Original source: Instagram post of 15 October 2026. Published on 15 October 2026, date taken not known.