Dakar is ‘Go’ as Bennetts Team Up With Searles2Dakar Brothers

Arguably the world’s most gruelling motorsport event, the 2026 Dakar Rally will see ‘Searles2Dakar’ (brothers Carl and Craig Searles) make their debut, with Bennetts supporting them every dune of the way. Getting underway on January 3rd after extensive preparation, the duo will ride a pair of specially prepared Bennetts-liveried Husqvarna FR450 Rally machines.

Taking place between January 3rd and 17th in Saudi Arabia, the 2026 Dakar will bring riders to the shores of the Red Sea for an 8,000km loop, starting and finishing in the city of Yanbu. While this will be the first Dakar for the Searles brothers, they are no strangers to rallying, having competed in the 2025 World Rally Raid Championship in Abu Dhabi and the Baja Qatar.

The Dakar will be a full family affair, as father Andrew will be driving the support truck, and two additional mechanics joining the Searles clan. It was actually Andrew who started the team’s relationship with Bennetts, having called the motorcycle insurance specialists to insure their rally machines for the Rallye Du Maroc. Realising there was much more to the story than just another policy, they put Andrew in touch with the Bennetts Marketing team, who are now proudly sponsoring the duo as they take on their maiden Dakar.

To kick off their partnership the S2D duo carried out ‘dune’ training for a Bennetts photoshoot, appeared at the brand’s Motorcycle Live and Bike Shed stands, Bennetts British Superbike rounds and most improbably, doing a Cadwell Park Bennetts trackday with TT legend John McGuinness on their full Raid machines!

Carl Searles explained: “After a few false starts, it hasn’t quite sunk in yet that we are doing the 2026 Dakar! We are both really looking forward to getting going but we’re under no illusion of the challenges that lie ahead. We had actually applied for this year’s event, however our application needed more desert raid experience. Although that was disappointing, it was a silver lining as completing the two World Rally rounds has given us a massive amount of experience in riding sand dunes and navigation.

It's amazing having Bennetts onboard with us, supporting our journey and helping us increase our profile for sponsors. We’re now in full prep mode having ridden in the British Enduro Championship and working on our bike stamina with MotoFit.”

Chris Newble from Bennetts explained the partnership, "We love supporting riders on a ‘mission’ and it’s been a pleasure to follow and support the S2D journey so far. From a simple phone call to insure their bikes a few years ago to riding the Dakar, it’s an incredible story and one we’re proud to be a part of … and we can’t wait for the event itself in January!”

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