HERO

« C’est une sensation incroyable d’être en tête du championnat. Tout le monde attend maintenant le Portugal où ce sera une course disputée. Mais l’équipe et la moto sont au top, je ne me suis jamais senti aussi à l’aise, je vais donc juste continuer à prendre du bon temps sur la moto comme je l’ai fait sur le Dakar et l’Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. »

You won't meet a more enthusiastic and cheerful rider in a bivouac whether in Argentina, Morocco or Saudi Arabia. Year after year, Ross Branch is living the dream. And his smile never leaves his face. Since winning his first stage in 2020 as a privateer, the rider from Botswana has blazed a glorious trail. That road hasn’t always been a walk in the park, especially when he became a factory rider. During his Dakar campaigns in the blue colours of the official Yamaha team (in 2021 and 2022), his adventures ended in tears, first because of a mechanical incident, then a crash. With Yamaha having stopped its rally-raid programme, things could have ended there for the Gaborone native. Fortunately, a new opportunity arose with Indian manufacturer Hero and its factory team. While continuing to work as an airline pilot, Branch once again took part in all the rounds of the W2RC, finishing in the top five of the general classification after excellent results in Argentina (4th) and Morocco (4th). Nicknamed the 'Ferrari of the Kalahari' by a local fan in reference to a very fast donkey cart, 37-year-old Ross Branch now has just one thing on his mind: win the Dakar after retiring twice and finishing the last rally in a disappointing 27th place (despite two stage wins). At any rate, he feels ready to smile on the podium of the world's most famous rally raid five years after finishing as the best rookie in 2019 (13th overall).