Sam Sunderland

Sam Sunderland (born 15 April 1989 in Poole) is a Dubai-based British rally raid motorcycle rider, best known for his participation in the Dakar Rally, which he won in 2017 and 2022.^[1]

Sam Sunderland
Born	(1989-04-15) 15 April 1989 (age 35) United Kingdom
Dakar Rally career
Debut season	2012
Current team	Gas Gas Factory Racing
Former teams	Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Wins	2017 Dakar Rally 2022 Dakar Rally
Championship titles
2019 2022	FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship World Rally-Raid Championship (RallyGP)

Career

Sunderland made his Dakar debut in 2012, riding a Honda, after winning the UAE National Baja Championship in 2010 and 2011.^[2] He was forced to retire on the third stage due to an electrical fault, and was unable to compete the following year after breaking both wrists in testing prior to the event.^[3]

Riding for the factory Honda team in 2014, Sunderland became the first British rider to win a stage of the Dakar since John Deacon in 1998 when he won the second stage to move up to third in the overall classification, only to suffer engine failure the following day and drop out of the rally.^[3] Later that year, he was signed to the factory KTM team, winning two stages of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and placing second in the Morocco Rally. Sam went on to win Morocco rally in 2015 and won Qatar sealine rally in 2016. He won the Dakar Rally in 2017.

Sunderland was the recipient of the Royal Automobile Club's 2017 Segrave Trophy "for being the first Briton to win a Dakar Rally crown by winning the motorcycle category in 2017".^[4][5]

In 2018 Dakar Rally Sam won stages 1 and 3 before crashing out in stage 4. 2019 Dakar Rally saw Sam winning stages 5 and 7, and finishing 3rd overall.^[6] In 2020 edition in Saudi Arabia Sam crashed out with an injury in stage 5.^[7]

In 2022, Sunderland won first place in the Dakar Rally for the second time since his previous win in 2010.^[8]

Career results

Dakar Rally

Year	Class	Vehicle	Position	Stages won
2012	Motorbike	Honda	DNF	0
2014			DNF	1
2015		KTM	DNF	1
2017			1st	1
2018			DNF	2
2019			3rd	2
2020			DNF	0
2021			3rd	1
2022		Gas Gas	1st	1
2023			DNF	0
2024			DNF	0

References

1. "Dakar Rally: Sam Sunderland becomes first British rider to win famous race". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
2. "Sam Sunderland". KTM.com. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
3. "Competitors: Sam Sunderland". dakar.com. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
4. "2017 Dakar winner Sunderland finds focus in freediving". Special Broadcasting Service. Reuters. 4 May 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
5. "Past Winners". Royal Automobile Club. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
6. "Profile of Sam Sunderland". Amaury Sport Organisation. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
7. "Sam Sunderland Crashes Out of Dakar on Stage 5". Enduro21.com. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
8. "How Sam Sunderland has mastered calculating the risks of rally-raid". Red Bull. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 17 June 2024.

External links

• Athlete profile of Sam Sunderland on Redbull.com

Sporting positions
Preceded by Toby Price	Dakar Rally Motorcycle Winner 2017	Succeeded by Matthias Walkner
Preceded by Kevin Benavides	Dakar Rally Motorcycle Winner 2022	Succeeded by Kevin Benavides