Established rally racer Ross Branch has been announced as Hero MotoSports’ latest signing. This means the Indian squad will field a three-rider line-up for the rest of this year, with Branch joining Joaquim Rodrigues and Franco Caimi, who has recovered from his training injury.
· Branch’s first outing for Hero will be at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge
· Branch will race alongside Rodrigues and Caimi
Ross Branch rally career
Ross Branch is a three-time South African Cross Country Champion and a seven-time winner of the Botswana 1000 Desert Race. He also has an impressive track record at the Dakar Rally, where he has competed for four consecutive years now.
He won in the Dakar rookie category on his debut attempt in 2019 and followed that up with a stage win in 2020. He competed in the 2022 Dakar Rally for the Monster Energy Yamaha Rally Team, but unfortunately had to retire after suffering a fall. Branch was also the winner of the opening round of the 2021 FIM Cross Country Rallies Championship, at Kazakhstan, and finished the championship in 10th place.
Hero MotoSports signs Branch
Branch’s first outing for Hero MotoSports will be at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge in March 2022, which is also the second round of the newly formed FIM World Rally Raid Championship.
“I am thrilled and extremely honoured to be joining a team that’s making the headlines for all the right reasons. I’ve been tracking the growth of Hero MotoSports for the last couple of years and have often been amazed at how quickly this young team has made it to the top league,” he said.
“I’m joining the team at a great time, and I hope I’ll be able to do my best to deliver great results. I look forward to riding alongside some of the best and promising riders in the sport, who are also my good friends.”
“Both Ross and Franco were teammates a few years back, and I’m happy that they are back together again. I also remember with gratitude and pride, how Ross had stopped to help Sebastian Buhler after his crash at Abu Dhabi last year. I am confident that his rich experience and camaraderie with the other riders will be a big boost to our team performance in this season and beyond,” added Wolfgang Fischer, team manager, Hero MotoSports Team Rally.
Hero MotoSports at Dakar 2022
The 2022 Dakar Rally was a monumental one for Hero MotoSports, with Rodrigues handing the team their first-ever Dakar stage win on Stage 3. He followed that up with another podium finish in Stage 11.
Both Rodrigues and Aaron Mare, who was drafted in to replace the injured Caimi, finished in the top 20. Rodrigues was 14th overall, while Caimi finished 16th.
Suraj Viswanathan
