Yokohama Sonora Rally | Road to Dakar

Road to Dakar for UTVs

Yokohama Sonora Rally announced its 2019 Road to Dakar program for UTVs. For the 2019 Sonora Rally, the Road To Dakar prize will be given to the winning UTV competitor.

Yokohama Sonora Rally is the only North American Road to Dakar event and is also considered a Dakar qualifier for racers looking to get accepted to the Dakar in the future. The 2019 event is scheduled to run March 17-22, 2019.

In 2018, the five Road to Dakar events (Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South America) gave racers, whom have never competed in the Dakar Rally, the opportunity to win a free entry to the world-famous event. Take a look at this video to see what the Yokohama Sonora Rally Road to Dakar is all about:

Video | Yokohama Sonora Rally

The winner of the 2019 Road to Dakar will receive a free entry, worth $33,000, into the 2020 Dakar Rally. In order to be eligible for the UTV Road to Dakar prize, the entrants must be new competitors to Dakar.

“We are thrilled to once again be working with Sonora Rally to help promote the Road to Dakar, and the sport of rally raid in North America,” said Xavier Gavory, Deputy General Manager, Dakar Rally. “With the growth of the SxS class at the 2019 Dakar, combined with a strong group of U.S. competitors, we are excited to see who will be the first Road to Dakar UTV winner at the 2019 Sonora Rally.”

New for 2019 Yokohama Sonora Rally

New for 2019, the entry fees for the 2019 Sonora Rally will now include five full race stages, all bivouac meals and an upgraded insurance program for racers and support crew.

The rally will begin in San Luis Rio Colorado and for the first time, the Sonora Rally will finish in the state capital of Hermosillo. Surrounded by Sonoran desert and voted one of the five best cities to live in Mexico, Hermosillo is excited to host the 2019 Sonora rally finish line festivities at the eclectic Parque La Ruina.

The title sponsor of the 2019 Sonora Rally is Yokohama Tire Corporation. The partnership began last year, in 2018.

“The Sonora Rally is quickly becoming one of the premier and challenging off-road rally events in North America,” said Fardad Niknam, Yokohama Tire director of segment development. “This is truly an exciting event and a perfect fit to highlight our Geolandar line of off-road tires, like the Geolandar M/T G003 mud-terrain tire.”