Silk Way Rally, one of the fastest-growing cross-country rally races in the world, is about to start in Omsk, Russia, on the 1st of July. The 11th edition of Silk Way Rally marks the event’s entry in the professional racing world: Silk Way is now part of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship for the second year running.
This year, Silk Way promises 5,250 adrenaline-inducing kilometers over ten stages crossing the Altai Mountains, Siberia, and Mongolia’s Gobi Desert. Five factory teams are starting in Omsk: Red Bull KTM Factory with Sam Sunderland and Matthias Walkner, Rockstar Husqvarna with Luciano Benavides and Skyler Howes, GasGas with Daniel Sanders, Monster Yamaha with Ross Branch, Adrien van Beveren, and Andrew Short, and finally, Honda Hero with Joaquim Rodriguez, Franco Caimi, and Sebastian Buhler.
Sam Sunderland won the Silk Way in 2019; now, however, with contenders like Ross Branch and Skyler Howes who have made their name with spectacular Dakar Rally performances recently, the scales may yet tip the other way.
Stay tuned for more Silk Way Rally news as the race starts on the first of July!
Race stats:
Start Ceremony: July 1, 2021, Omsk (Russia)
RACE VEHICLES : 90
– 46 CARS (FIA AND OPEN), including 29 SSV (T3/T4)
– 27 BIKE QUAD including 7 G-MOTO CHALLENGE
– 17 TRUCKS
Total vehicles race + service = 212
Total persons race + service = 487
TEAMS. :41
– 17 RUSSIAN
– 18 WORLD
– 6 MONGOLIAN
NATIONALITIES. (race+ service) = 32
Source and images: Silk Way Rally