R.I.P. Fabrizio Meoni

I never realized how dangerous this race (and this type of racing) is. The day before this Jose-Manuel Perez died from injuries he sustained in a crash during stage 7. Another great, Richard Sainct, died from crash injuries during the Pharaoh Rally in Egypt just four months earlier. In the Dakar’s 27 year history 22 riders have died.



I'm not getting some perverse thrill out of these stats or trying to defame the sport. I respect rally racing and the Dakar in particular for being one of the most unique and challenging races of all types of motor sports. However, do you have to step back and ask what’s wrong where a competitor dies nearly every year of the event?