Sherco TVS Racing Announces Three Rider Team For Dakar 2018

The 2018 Dakar Rally will be the 10th Dakar entry for Joan Pedrero, a Spanish rider with a lot of experience in off-road racing. Joan Pedrero had joined the Sherco TVS Racing team in 2014 and has been riding for them since 2015.

Hailing from France, Adrien Metge will be taking part in the Dakar for the third time. He too has a lot of experience in riding having been involved in motorcycle racing since he was five-years-old.

All eyes though will be set on Aravind KP who will have his second run at the Dakar rally in 2018. The 32-year-old hails from the city of Udupi in Karnataka and will be one of the only two Indian riders at the Dakar 2018, the other being CS Santosh, racing with Hero MotoSports.

Sherco is a Spanish motorcycle manufacturer specialising in the production of various off-road motorcycles. It has been four years since the company got into a partnership with TVS Racing with an aim of taking part in International rallies.

Together, both companies have developed the RTR 450 which has been a reliable motorcycle with excellent performance.

For the 2018 Dakar rally, the RTR 450 has been lightened and is running a higher state of tune. It now has a maximum power output of around 69bhp, 3bhp more than the previous version of the motorcycle.

Arun Siddharth, the Vice President, Marketing - Premium Two Wheelers, International Business & TVS Racing, said, "TVS was the first Indian manufacturer to participate at Dakar and this year we have stepped up our participation in, and preparation for, international rally raids. We are aiming for a Top 10 finish at the Dakar 2018."

The Dakar rally is the toughest and most brutal motorsport event in the world. The 2018 edition will happen between January 6th and 20th, 2018. The route consists of sand dunes, river crossings, rocky mountains, etc. Basically no roads for 9,000 kilometres.

The Sherco TVS RTR 450s have been prepped and are ready to face the challenge. The riders themselves are well-prepared too, through participation in international rallies such as the Baja Aragon, Merzouga rally, Oilibya rally, etc.

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The Sherco TVS Racing Team is therefore fielding experienced riders on a faster, more reliable machine, for the next edition of the Dakar - the makings of a winning team. How they will actually fare is something to be seen. Watch this space for more, as we follow TVS Racing's journey at the Dakar.