Ricky Brabec (born 21 April 1991) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

professional

off-road Off-roading is the act of driving or riding in a vehicle on unpaved surfaces such as sand, dirt, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, or other natural terrain. Off-roading ranges from casual drives with regular vehicles to competitive events w ...

and

rally raid Rally raid is a type of off-road motorsport event competed with different types of vehicles. Along with shorter Baja (cross-country rally), baja rallies, rally raid constitutes cross-country rallying. Both the Fédération Internationale de l'Aut ...

motorcycle racer. He is prominent for being the first American competitor to win the motorcycle division of the

Dakar Rally The Dakar Rally () or simply "The Dakar" (), formerly known as the Paris–Dakar Rally (), is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO). It is an off-road endurance event traversing terrain much tougher than convent ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

. He won the Dakar again in 2024.

Biography

Brabec was born in

San Bernardino San Bernardino ( ) is a city in and the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 census, making it the List of ...

, California and started

BMX BMX, an abbreviation for bicycle motocross or bike motocross, is a cycle sport performed on BMX bikes, either in competitive BMX racing or freestyle BMX, or else in general street or off-road recreation. History BMX began during the ea ...

when he was five years old. When he was 15, he and his family moved to the desert city of

Hesperia, California Hesperia () is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. It is located north of downtown San Bernardino in Victor Valley and surrounded by the Mojave Desert. Because of its relatively high elevation and the unique and moderat ...

. First trying

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

, Brabec began

desert racing Desert racing is the act of racing through the desert in a two- or four-wheeled off-road vehicle. Races, which generally consist of two or more loops around a course covering up to , can take the form of Hare and Hound or Hare scramble style eve ...

in 2011. In 2014, Brabec won the

Baja 1000 The Baja 1000 is an annual Mexican off-road motorsport race held on the Baja California Peninsula, with a course of up to about 850 or more miles. It is one of the most prestigious off-road races in the world, having attracted competitors from ...

Baja 500 The Baja 500 is a Mexican off-road motorsport race on the Baja California Peninsula that is sanctioned by SCORE International. The course has remained relatively the same over the years with the majority of events being loop races starting and fi ...

and

San Felipe 250 The SCORE International, SCORE San Felipe 250 is a 250-mile Mexican Offroad racing, off-road motorsport race that takes place near San Felipe, Baja California, San Felipe on the Baja California Peninsula. It was first held in 1982 and is sanctioned ...

. He was fifth in the bike category at

Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is an international rally raid race held in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi of the United Arab Emirates since 1991. The race is points scoring for the World Rally-Raid Championship The World Rally-Raid Championship (offi ...

in 2015. In 2016, he was sixth at

Merzouga Rally Merzouga Rally is a rally raid that takes place in Morocco every year since 2010 at the beginning of October in the big dunes of Merzouga. It’s a five-day race plus prologue and a marathon stage in the desert. The stages are varied and around 20 ...

and seventh at Atacama Rally in the bike category. He made his

debut in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

and finished in 9th. In

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, he won his first stage, but failed to finish the race. In

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, he was running in 6th place when he was forced out of the race. It was the second time in his career that he retired from a race. In

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, he retired for the third consecutive year. In 2020, he won the bike category and two stages. Brabec also represented the United States at three

International Six Days Enduro The International Six Days Enduro (ISDE), formerly known as the International Six Days Trial (ISDT), is the oldest 'off-road' motorcycle event on the FIM Calendar. The ISDT was first held in 1913 at Carlisle, England. It has occurred annually, a ...

events. The International Six Days Enduro is a form of off-road motorcycle Olympics that is the oldest annual competition sanctioned by the

FIM FIM may refer to: Organizations and companies * Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, the International Motorcycling Federation * Flint Institute of Music, in Michigan, United States * Fox Interactive Media, now News Corp. Digital Media * ...

, dating back to 1913.

Career Results

Rally Dakar

Other results

** 2014 *

** 5th 2015 ** 6th 2018 * Atacama Rally ** 7th 2016 ** 9th 2018 ** 6th 2019 *

** 6th 2016 *

** 2020 *

Rallye OiLibya du Maroc Rallying is a wide-ranging form of motorsport with various competitive motoring elements such as speed tests (sometimes called "rally racing" in United States), navigation tests, or the ability to reach waypoints or a destination at a prescribed ...

** 2018 ** 5th 2019

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brabec, Ricky 1991 births Living people People from Hesperia, California Sportspeople from San Bernardino, California Dakar Rally motorcyclists American motocross riders Off-road motorcycle racers Enduro riders Dakar Rally–winning drivers