Matthias Walkner will sit out the 2024 Dakar Rally after sustaining a leg injury earlier this week. Walkner fell from his KTM 450 Rally bike during training, breaking his tibia, fibula and ankle joint.
Kevin Benavides also sustained a leg injury during testing but will continue to get ready for the rally. Benavides training schedule has been cut short.
“It’s been a very difficult few days for the team here in the United States. Training for the Dakar had been going extremely well, with all riders working very hard. Kevin damaged his leg last Sunday, but thankfully, it wasn’t too bad. We hope he will be back to near full fitness by Dakar. On Monday, Matthias had a nasty crash while training, which ended up in him having several fractures. The surgery went really well, and they have attached a fixator to his left leg to help the recovery. But he will require more surgery, once the swelling starts to go down. Obviously, these two incidents have been a massive blow to the team, but we will continue to look ahead and do all we can to be as strong as possible for Dakar. The whole team wishes both Matthias and Kevin a quick and full recovery,” said Andreas Hölzl, Rally Team Manager.
