The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge 2025 once again provided an impressive stage for the elite of rally-raid sports. Over five challenging stages, the riders battled against the relentless desert and each other, with the top 10 competitors delivering outstanding performances.
Race Report and Focus on the Top 10 Riders
The overall victory in the motorcycle category was claimed by Australian rider Daniel Sanders on his KTM 450 Rally Factory, finishing with a total time of 14:20:56 hours. Sanders delivered consistently top performances throughout the race and ultimately secured the win with a 5-minute and 47-second lead over second-place finisher Ricky Brabec. Brabec, riding for the Honda team, completed the race in 14:26:43 hours. Spanish rider Tosha Schareina, also on a Honda CRF450 Rally, secured third place with a total time of 14:27:00 hours, just 17 seconds behind Brabec.
Fourth and fifth place went to Luciano Benavides (KTM) and Adrien Van Beveren (Honda), finishing in 14:28:57 and 14:30:48 hours, respectively. José Ignacio Cornejo, riding a Hero 450 Rally, secured sixth place with 14:33:29 hours, followed by Skyler Howes (Honda) in seventh place with 14:39:13 hours. Michael Docherty (Husqvarna) finished in eighth place with 14:46:04 hours, while Konrad Dabrowski (KTM) and Tobias Ebster (KTM) completed the top 10 with times of 15:20:30 and 15:37:29 hours, respectively.
World Championship Standings After the Race
Following this second round of the FIM World Rally-Raid Championship 2025, Daniel Sanders leads the overall standings with 63 points. Tosha Schareina follows in second place with 46 points, while Ricky Brabec holds third place with 37 points. Adrien Van Beveren sits in fourth place with 35 points, closely followed by Luciano Benavides with 33 points in fifth place.
Performance of Tobias Ebster
Austrian rider Tobias Ebster, competing for the SRG Motorsports Team on a KTM 450 Rally Replica, delivered a solid performance, securing tenth place overall with a time of 15:37:29 hours. Unfortunately, he had to replace the gearbox due to technical issues, which resulted in a 15-minute time penalty. Several additional mechanical failures cost him more valuable minutes. Furthermore, this time, Tobias was riding an older generation GasGas Rally 450, which required significant compromises, particularly in suspension setup. Given these circumstances, his top 10 finish is even more impressive and speaks to his skill and determination!
Performance of Justin Gerlach
German rider Justin Gerlach, after his debut and strong performance at the Dakar Rally, has fully embraced rally-raid racing. In the weeks following Dakar, Justin did everything possible to be on the starting line for the next championship round, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. He succeeded in his efforts, bringing him one step closer to his goal of competing in the entire World Championship.
A special challenge this time was the combination of competing in the “Original by Motul / Malle Moto” class—without external assistance—while also riding an older motorcycle than the one he used at Dakar. Despite facing an early electrical issue with the fuel pump switch, Gerlach managed to complete the rally successfully. With a 21st-place finish in the Rally 2 category and an impressive 4th place in the Malle Moto class, Justin wrapped up the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge with another strong performance!
