After two exhausting weeks in the Saudi Arabian desert, Harith Noah made history on Friday by winning the Dakar Rally in the Rally 2 class, making history as the first Indian to do so. He finished 11th overall, six minutes outside of the coveted top 10 position. In his fifth Dakar Rally, Noah led second-place finisher Romain Dumontier by more than four minutes. This is the highest position an Indian has ever held in the Dakar Rally. After suffering some health concerns in the first week of the 12-stage race, the TVS Sherco rider found his form in the second week.
He moved up two spots after Stage 8 and stayed in P13 overall until the completion of the rally. In Stage 6, he had jumped from P18 to P13 overall. In both Stage 8 and Stage 10, Noah recorded the fastest time.