Exactly one month remains until the 2019 Tatts Finke Desert Race kicks off and there is plenty of hype surrounding the premier off road race in Australia.
Acting as the second round for the BFGoodrich CAMS Australian Off Road Championship, the race has a record number of entries with more than 800 bikes and cars taking part.
Amongst that record breaking entry list are a number of potential winners and former AORC champions including Jack Rhodes, Mathew Martin, David Fellows, Mark Burrows.
A host of previous Finke winners in Hayden Bentley, Greg Gartner, Brad Gallard and Glen Owen are also on the hunt to add to their resume, while some other of the championship’s front-runners in Beau Robinson, Toby Whateley and Josh Howells will be looking to claim their maiden victory in the Northern Territory based event.
Despite a plethora of talented drivers competing, all eyes will be on the event’s two biggest names, Shannon Rentsch and Toby Price.
While Rentsch will be hoping to add a seventh ‘King of the Desert’ to his name, Price is in the best place to prevent the regaining champion from making a hat-trick of wins.
Price has done it all before, he’s won the event multiple times on the bike, he was so close to finishing the event last year in the car and he is full of confidence after winning Dakar – with a broken hand.
The Red Bull representative is also getting more and more experience in off road racing after spending time in the DEWALT SXS Australian Championship and in 2019, he will be racing solely in the truck, giving him a fantastic chance for victory.
As drivers begin the event at Alice Springs and travel around 229 competitive kilometres south to Finke, before turning around and doing it all again the next day, it’s a very exciting prospect knowing there is only one month until one of the biggest off road events in the world.
The Tatts Finke Desert Race takes place from Friday 7 to Monday 10 June with the highly anticipated Street Party and night market kicking off the event on Thursday 6 June.