Taking Over the Dakar!

Dakar Proven.

Dakar 2025 is in full force, and so is Elka Suspension.

The first three stages of the famous Dakar Rally are now behind us, and we’re proud to announce that our Elka Shocks are performing just as we thought they would, perfectly.

With Can-Am Factory’s Team USA 420 Hunter Miller behind the wheel, the Elka-Equipped Maverick R is being pushed to its limits. With a slight mechanical mishap happening in the very first stage of the Rally, the team is now executing a more aggressive strategy and trying to overtake the competition to make up for the lost time.

That means every single mechanical component is being pushed to its failure point, and our shocks are unsurprisingly taking everything the Dakar throws at them easily! With our very own Yan Pitre and our partner George White from Double-E-Racing making sure the shocks are perfectly dialed, Hunter Miller and his Navigator Andrew Short have managed some amazing times in both the 48 Hours Chrono and the 3rd Stage.

This is only the start of the Rally though, and they’re now ready to attack the 5th Stage. Stay tuned!

48 Hours Chrono

Probably one of the hardest challenges of the Dakar, the 48 Hours Chrono is now behind us!

Despite having to race 1000 kilometers over 2 days without any external help, all while camping in Saudi Arabia’s desert, the team managed to do incredibly well! After racing for over 13 hours, Hunter could proudly say he’d ended the 48 Hours Chrono in 7th place! Much like our Elka Shocks, Hunter Miller is making his mark at Dakar 2025, emerging as a force to be reckoned with!

Overtaking the Competition

After ending the first stage in 35th place in their category due to a mechanical failure, the duo is now overtaking the competition all the way to the top, stage after stage!

Aboard their Elka-Equipped Maverick R, the team has been making progress towards first place consistently, ending the second stage in 16th place overall in their category, the 3rd in 14th, and the 4th in 9th place! The duo is now heading into the 5th stage looking to break the top 5 of their category!

What is the Dakar?

What to expect in the world’s hardest race, the Dakar?

  • 2 weeks of the most intense racing across Saudi Arabia’s desert.

  • 7700 kms of desert, dunes and spectacular landscapes.

  • 12 Different stages and a prologue, all more exciting than the other from Bisha to Shubaytah.

  • A 2-day marathon stage of more than 1000 kms where competitors find themselves isolated from the rest of their team.

  • A 48 hours chrono of over 1000 kms right at the start of the rally, starting on January 5th and ending the next day.

  • A final day presenting a Mass start for an even more special desert spectacle.

  • Countless jumps, intense speeds, the hardest mechanical challenges ever across the unforgiving no man’s land of the desert.

Needless to say, nothing about the Dakar will be easy. The two weeks will be some of the hardest for the competitors, the machines, the teams and every mechanical component will be pushed to their limits. But it is also the perfect opportunity for everyone involved, including Hunter Miller and Elka suspension, to show the world what we’re made of once again.

Make sure to tune in on the race, starting on January 3rd. Streaming will be available directly on Redbull TV, but also across numerous streaming platforms.