n what seems to be a blow to many fans, 2018 Dakar Rally winner and KTM Factory rider, Matthias Walkner will miss the 2024 edition of the Dakar Rally, having sustained multiple fractures to his leg during a practice session.
The Austrian rally raid champion fractured his tibia, fibula, and ankle joint on December 5 while training in the US. Walkner underwent surgeries and is recovering, while more surgeries are required in due course, which could be done back in Austria.
In an official statement, Andreas Hölzl – Rally Team Manager said:
“It’s been a very difficult few days for the team here in the United States. Training for the Dakar had been going extremely well, with all riders working very hard. Kevin damaged his leg last Sunday, but thankfully, it wasn’t too bad. We hope he will be back to near full fitness by Dakar. On Monday, Matthias had a nasty crash while training, which ended up in him having several fractures.”
“The surgery went really well, and they have attached a fixator to his left leg to help the recovery. But he will require more surgery, once the swelling starts to go down. Obviously, these two incidents have been a massive blow to the team, but we will continue to look ahead and do all we can to be as strong as possible for Dakar. The whole team wishes both Matthias and Kevin a quick and full recovery.”
For what seems like an unfortunate incident for KTM this year, current Dakar champion Kevin Benavides also suffered from an injury to his left leg while training. On the brighter side, Benavides’ injury was not deemed serious, however, the Argentinian had to cut short his practice.
For the 2024 Dakar Rally, the Red Bull KTM Factory team will compete with two riders now, Australian Toby Price, who has won the Dakar Rally in 2016 and 2019, and Kevin Benavides, who has won the Dakar twice with two different teams — Honda (2021) and KTM (2023).