Charan Moore is a South African motorcycle racer, who won the 'Original by Motul' (ObM) class in the 2023 Dakar Rally for bike competitors competing without any kind of assistance. Moore made his Dakar Rally debut in 2022, finishing in 34th place in the motorcycle class and 4th in the ObM category. He returned in 2023, this time winning in the ObM category while finishing 28th overall.

After a hectic two weeks which had everything that makes the Dakar as tough as it is, Charan finished his race in first place! The combination of mechanical issues, injury and flu made this Dakar even more difficult. Charan twice built up a substantial lead over his nearest rivals, only to see it whittled away by a determined field of experienced and committed riders in what was previously known as the Malle Moto class. Competing in the ObM class tests not just riding ability, but also a competitor’s mechanical competence, organisational abilities, and capacity to perform mentally and physically in the face of extreme and cumulative fatigue.

Coming from a motorcycle racing family - his dad ran race teams - Charan grew up at the track and started racing at 16. Twelve years of hard graft later it all came together in 2021 when he signed for KTM South Africa and won the country’s prestigious National Cross Country Championship. With the likes of Hero factory rider and friend Ross Branch making such an impact in rally-raid it was only natural that Charan’s attentions turned towards the Dakar and after a promising debut on the Kalahari Rally, he signed up for the 2022 edition in the unassisted ‘Original by Motul’ class. 

Definitely not the easy option, but despite ‘riding to finish’ and very little rally-raid experience Charan ended up just off the podium in fourth place. This year, he knew what was expected to win the prestigious category the second time out.