"Just over two months ago we finished the great challenge of last season and we are back on track to start a new year of racing," Raul Castells - Monster Energy Honda Team Manager - said in the lead up to opening day.
"We are excited about this Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, an interesting test in the world championship which this year celebrates the inclusion of a great event like the Silk Way Rally, which includes motorcycle riders for the first time. The Atacama Rally in Chile and the Rally of Morocco will also involve our team‰Ûªs participation and are almost obligatory if you want to prepare well for the 2020 Dakar, although we still haven‰Ûªt found out which territories it will pass through."
Once Saturday‰Ûªs opener is out of the way, the race moves inland, with the action commencing in the midst of the Liwa desert. For the rally‰Ûªs final day of racing, competitors return to the Yas Marina Circuit where the winners of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge will be crowned. Riders can look forward to tackling some 1,900 kilometres of Emirati deserts and dunes before they make it back.
