Petrol heads rejoice – marking the first round of the FIM European Championship and SSV Mediterranean Cup, the Hellas Rally Raid returned for 2021. Over 260 competitors from 35 countries descended upon the beautiful town of Nafpaktos and to lock horns with each other, across 2000km and six days of action.

• Day One

Following a 56km prologue and a bike leading the pack, former French Enduro Champion and 6x Dakar Rally finisher, Loic Minaudier (FR) lead the charge on day one. Blistering heat and disabling dust added to the 430km of intense action across the majestic Peloponnese peninsula as riders travelled across the mountainous terrain of Nafpaktos.

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• Day Two

Following a great start to this year’s Hellas Rally Raid, competitors strapped in and saddled up for 530km of tire screeching and engine roaring action. After a short safety delay, competitors continued racing through the alpine zones and mountain ridges of the majestic Peloponnese peninsula.

Day One front runner Loic Minaudier (FR) continued going strong, once again leading the MOTO class.

This leads us onto the massively anticipated marathon day, which will include 400km with a sleep over in the town of Karpenissi, often called the "Switzerland of Greece" due to its atypical beauty, further putting the skills of the drivers to the test.

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• Day Three

Day Three was perhaps the most demanding day of the whole rally, the Marathon Day. Competitors had to muster every ounce of their resolve, putting both their riding skills and toughness to the test. Riders were tasked with conquering 400km before a sleep over in the town of Karpenissi, often called the "Switzerland of Greece" due to its atypical beauty. Loic Minaudier continued his pace, retaining first place in the MOTO class at the midpoint of the Marathon Stage.

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• Day Four

Motoring action continues on the fourth day of Hellas Rally Raid, where hundreds of screaming engines blasted through some of the most unique locations Greece has to offer. Some of the participants were battle-scarred and others challenged by the route’s morphology, but all of them remained in awe of the immense beauty of the scenery.

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In a change of fortunes, Tobias Ebster obtained a good grasp of the first place in the MOTO Class amongst fierce competition. The marathon stage ended after an adventurous 650km in total, allowing the teams to get back to the service park in order to regroup, repair rides and get ready for the next day.

• Day Five

After the crew’s resilience and determination was put to the test during the Marathon stage, today all participants headed off to Trikorfo while also passing by the majestic lake of Mornos on their way back to Nafpaktos. Navigating through 133km of challenging trails and gorgeous mountain peaks, the end of Day 5 found Von Zitzewitz Davide leading the MOTO Class.

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• Day Six

Day Six held more pleasant surprises for the Hellas Rally Raid participants, as they raced across 300km of Dorida’s most exciting trails putting their vehicles through their paces. With the beautiful sunny weather as their ally, this was probably one of the most enjoyable stages of the week.

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After six days of competition and having become familiar with the local terrain Minaudier Loic picked up the pace to lead as they approached the final leg of the race.

• Day Seven

The seventh and final day of the Hellas Rally Raid found participants in Drosato where they had to race across 73km of a special stage and 112km in total before they reached the end of this magnificent journey. Minaudier Loic was the fastest amongst the MOTO Class after a week full of very solid performances from the French rider.

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One more edition of the Hellas Rally Raid came to a close leaving all teams and participants filled with vivid memories, beautiful Greek scenery and of course memorable adventures.

Final Results

HellasRally.org

Photos by: Actiongraphers - Actiongraphers.com