Buhler set for Mantshwabisi debut
Kabelo Boranabi | Monday June 19, 2023 11:43
Bühler will join Hero MotoSports teammate, Ross Branch at the race to be held in Jwaneng from June 23-25, 2023.
The Indian based team will also be making its first appearance on local shores. Branch had previously outlined plans to bring the Hero MotoSports team to the race and over the weekend the team confirmed Bühler’s appearance.
“For the first time, we are headed to participate in the most celebrated sporting event in Botswana, the Toyota 1000 Desert Race. Seven-time winner of this race Ross Branch will be joined by Sebastian Bühler, and together they are ready to engage in a fierce off–road battle in the Kalahari Desert Race,” Hero MotoSports announced through social media platforms. Bühler will be making his second appearance in Africa after the 2022 Rallye du Maroc where he finished 12th.
The German has finished as the third best rookie on his Dakar Rally debut in 2019. A year later on his second, he retired from the race in stage six before he finished 14th on the 2021 edition of the Dakar Rally. He currently sits on the 11th spot in the 2023 FIM Cross Country World Championship rankings, three places behind Branch.
Bühler’s inclusion in the race makes an exciting starting list on the OR1 class. Branch is an early favourite as he looks for an eighth-time title. Former Dakar Rally bikers, Vincent Crosbie and John Kelly looked good on their return to the bike in the first round of the Botswana Motor Sport (BMS) National Off-Road Championship.
Teenage sensation and 2022 BMS Best Rider, Kosmas Mamaloukos will enter as a ‘dark horse’ in a star-studded line-up. Mantshwabisi will be making a return to Botswana after three years. The race is attracting a number of high profile participants after being named as a 2024 Dakar Rally qualifier race.