Mani Gyenes, designated ambassador of Dakar Rally

Legend of the Dakar Rally since 2020, the driver from northwestern Satu Mare Emanuel Gyenes will also have the role of ambassador at the 45th edition of the most difficult endurance competition in motorsport, according to a press release sent to AGERPRES.

Mani Gyenes will guide the newcomers from the Original by Motul category (the toughest of the rally, without technical assistance), together with the Spanish Joan Pedrero Garcia and the French Benjamin Melot, Agerpres informs.

"The role of ambassador in the Original By Motul category gives me the opportunity to help beginners, relying on the experience accumulated during the 12 Dakars. Most of the activity will take place in the days leading up to the start on December 31 and then on the rest day," Gyenes declared.

"I set off for Saudi Arabia with the same objective as in 2022: to be in the top 30. Last year there were a series of technical problems and the break in the frame, which made me lose a lot of time, so the preparations for the 2023 edition have started quite early. The bike has been prepared extremely thoroughly, it has a new frame. The fourth edition in Saudi Arabia will be a longer one, with more days of competition, and one where you have to dose your powers very well , because there are 15 days of the race. The first part will be more dangerous, because we have a lot of stone, there will be a lot of dust and that will make overtaking impossible. It is an advantage that we have the marathon stage, the one where we do not have access to tires and spare parts, in the Empty Quarter, because the chances of damaging the engine in the sand are lower,'' said Emanuel Gyenes (Autonet Motorcycle Team).

"One step closer to the 13th start in the competition that has become a way of life for me, I want to thank all my partners and family for their support! To those who follow me, I want to convey to them that I get to look over the messages and it is extraordinary to see that more and more people are interested in the Dakar Rally and what endurance means in the desert," said Gyenes.

Competitors from the Original by Motul (Malle Moto) category do not benefit from technical assistance. At the end of each day, when they arrive at the bivouac, they have to prepare their own motorcycle for the next stage. The organizers carry for each rider a box in which he/she puts some parts and various accessories, a set of wheels, a tent, a travel bag and a set of tires. Participants are provided with generator, compressor, tool kit, sleeping bag, work mat, etc.

Emanuel Gyenes had his first participation in the Dakar Rally in 2007, managing to finish the race at the last edition in Africa. In 2011 he achieved his first victory in the Marathon class (a class in which during the two weeks of the race you are not allowed to change a series of components, including the engine and the swingarm; this class no longer exists today). In 2015, he achieved his second victory in the Marathon class. In 2020, the driver from Satu Mare emerged victorious in the Original by Motul class, and in 2021 he ranked second in the Original by Motul, seven months after the triple fracture of his right leg.