2012 Dakar Rally

In less than a week, the 2012 Dakar Rally begins. For the 33rd running of the Dakar, competitors will travel almost 5,200 miles, taking a route from Mal Del Plata, Argentina, to Lima, Peru.

For 2012, the Dakar Rally will begin Jan. 1 and end Jan. 15, with only one day of rest. In the motorcycle class, all eyes will be on KTM riders Cyril Despres (Red Bull KTM 450 Rally) and Marc Coma (MRW KTM 450 Rally).

Coma and Despress each have three Dakar wins, and KTM took its 10th consecutive Dakar win in 2011 with Marc Coma at the controls of his 450 Rally. But there will be plenty of cometition from other manufacturers, including challenges from Husqvarna, Honda, Yamaha and Aprilia motorcycles.

Before the 2012 Dakar begins, here are some statistics regarding the overall rally:

• 4: the number of titles up for grabs at the Dakar, including the motorcycle, quad, car and truck categories
• 9: the record number of victories at the rally, held by Stéphane Peterhansel with six wins on motorcycles and three in cars. Vladimir Chagin holds the record for the most victories in a single category, with seven wins in trucks.
• 14: the number of racing days at the 2012 Dakar. Timed specials will be contested on each stage, from January 1 to January 15.
• 27: the number of countries visited by the Dakar since its inception, with Peru making its debut this year
• 20, 3, 5: the age in years, months and days of the youngest competitor in the rally, Argentinean Lucas Bonetto (quads)
• 50: the number of nationalities present at the rally
• 71, 3, 19: the age in years, months and days of the oldest competitor in the rally, Francisco Claudio Regunaschi (cars)
• 133: the number of French competitors in the race, representing the biggest national group with 18% of the total
• 190: the number of countries where pictures of the Dakar will be broadcast, by a total of 70 TV broadcasters
• 210: the number of organisation vehicles used at the rally on a daily basis (40 cars, 11 helicopters, 12 airplanes, 55 trucks, 5 buses, etc.)
• 260: the number of journalists following the entire rally, with 1,800 accredited members of the media (technicians, consultants, occasional visitors, etc.)
• 450: in cubic centimetres, the maximum permitted cylinder capacity for the engines of motorcycles taking part in the rally. This is the first time that this limit is imposed on all the competitors.
• 742: the number of competitors taking part in the race (pilots, co-pilots and mechanics)
• 980: the number of competitors participating as members of assistance teams
• 1,200: the estimated total hours of Dakar footage broadcast by TV channels from all over the world (based on 2011 data)
• 1978: the 1st edition, dated 1979, kicked off on December 26 of that year
• 8,373: the number of kilometres covered between Mar del Plata and Lima, with 4,406 kilometres' worth of special stages for motorcycles and 4,191 for cars
• 15,500: the number of carbon equivalent tonnes offset by the Dakar as part of the Madre de Dios project against deforestation, for a total sum of USD 200,000
• 302,703: the number of fans following the Dakar's official Facebook page a few days before the start of the race
• 510,000: in dollars, the grant paid by the Dakar over four years to the Un Techo Para Mi País foundation, devoted to building emergency housing in South America
• 710,000: in euros, the amount dedicated over seven years to the Actions Dakar projects, which promote good environmental practices in eastern Senegal
• 5 million: the number of spectators who came to see the Dakar start, finish or pass by in 2011, in Argentina and Chile
• 73.5 million: the number of page views on the www.dakar.com website during the 2011 edition of the rally
• 280 million: in dollars, the direct and indirect economic windfall generated by the Dakar for Argentina, as estimated by a study conducted by this country's government in 2011
• 1 billion: the number of TV viewers who watched pictures of the Dakar in 2011