2024 Dakar Rally: Klein, Kove work to avert customs crisis

Mason Klein‘s first race with Kove Moto was almost over before it began when he discovered his Kove 450 Rally EX was stuck at customs in Dubai just a day before final scrutineering for the Dakar Rally was set to conclude. Fortunately for him, the Kove crew was deployed in a van for a late night excursion across the Saudi-Emirati border to fetch the bike and will make it back to the bivouac in Al-‘Ula in time for Thursday’s closing inspections and the start of the race on Friday.

The 2024 Dakar Rally is set to be Klein’s début with Kove, having joined forces with the Chinese marque after losing his funding at KTM which cut short his rookie season in the World Rally-Raid Championship‘s RallyGP category. Although he enjoys the same level of access to Kove’s resources as their factory riders like Neels Theric and Xavier Flick, he is technically not part of their works programme and is still a privateer competing under the Klein Off-Road Racing Team banner.

Had the team not been able to get to Dubai and back in time, Klein would have had to look around for alternatives. Speaking with Enduro21, he stressed that he did not “want to ride any other bike,” but mentioned he would be open to returning to KTM if a slot was available.

“I’m here, everything is paid for, I just need a bike,” he explained. “Finishing is not my goal, I came here to get a result, that’s what I enjoy. It’s hard mentally. I hope we can get it back in time.”

Despite his fears, Kove quickly answered the call to duty.

“The bike will make it in time after the Kove team spent all night driving to pick it up at the border and all day driving back to the bivouac,” said Gary Goodwin, who oversees Kove’s American operations. “The ‘shipper’ wasn’t so good at shipping so the guys made it happen!”

Klein was not the only competitor in the field with a late logistical snag involving their vehicle. SSV driver Rodrigo Varela‘s Can-Am Maverick XRS Turbo that he prepared back home in Brazil will not arrive in Saudi Arabia until 16 January, when the race would already be well past its halfway point, prompting him to purchase a new vehicle in Portugal and airmail it. His team, with the help of friend and Austin Jones‘ navigator Gustavo Gugelmin, has since been working to find spare parts in time for Friday.

Besides Klein, Kove is fielding five bikes in the Rally2 class at Dakar for Flick, Sunier, Theric, and Fang Xiangling as well as Malle Moto competitor Cesare Zacchetti. Kove made their Dakar début in 2023 where all three of their riders, including Sunier, completed the race. Klein’s entry will be their first time competing in RallyGP. Klein’s Kove 450 Rally EX is an new and upgraded version of the Rally2 Kove 450.

The 2024 Dakar Rally begins with the Prologue on Friday. Klein, the 2022 Rally2 champion, won a stage at the 2023 edition but retired due to injury.