Australian Toby Price stands prepared to embrace the challenge of Desafio Ruta 40 in Argentina, nurturing aspirations of further solidifying his position as the leader in the 2023 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship when the event gets underway on August 27th.
Celebrating its 11th edition in 2023, the five-stage Argentinian event marks round four and the penultimate round of this year’s FIM World Rally-Raid Championship and will see the Price return to action since the third round of the series back in April.
Coming into the Desafio Ruta 40 leading the FIM World Rally-Raid Championship standings, the dual Dakar winner will be looking to extend that advantage on this penultimate round of the series. Price placed fourth at the Sonora Rally back in April and currently holds a seven-point lead at the top of the rankings. The tough Argentine terrain should suit the Australian well – the first of his two Dakar Rally wins came in 2016 when the event was held almost entirely in Argentina.
Reflecting upon his experience at the Sonora Rally, the 36-year-old remarked, “Looking back at Sonora, it was a nice, solid race and nothing too crazy,” Price continued, “It’s great to be here at round four in Argentina and it’s great to be back in South America. It’s always cool to see people that are excited to watch the race here and I’m looking forward to seeing what it will bring. We know we’re in for some tricky conditions, that’s for sure. The championship is good at the moment, I’m leading out but there are still two rounds to go, so for sure, anything can happen. We’ll just focus on Argentina for now then see what happens from there. I’m looking forward to seeing what the race will bring, everything is looking good at the moment. My body feels good, so we just need to have a strong race till the end!”
The 2023 Desafio Ruta 40 starts with a short prologue on August 27, followed by five full days of racing through the Argentine desert. On reaching the checkered flag in Salta on September 1, riders will have covered a total distance of 2,804 kilometers, with 1,555 kilometers raced against the clock.
