CaNav champion Ivan Martin entering Desafio Ruta 40

Iván Axell Martín is one of the top rally raiders on two wheels in South American competition today, having won the South American Rally Race and CaNav M2 championship. In August, he will be there when the World Rally-Raid Championship visits his native Argentina for the first time with the Desafío Ruta 40.

2022 was a banner year for Martín, who won the SARR in the M2 motorcycle category in rainy conditions followed by the CaNav M2 title; CaNav, or the Campeonato Argentino de Rally y Navegación, is the domestic cross-country rally series in Argentina. For the 2023 SARR, he moved up to M1 but retired after crashing and hurting his hand in the first stage.

After the DR40, he plans to race the International Six Days Enduro. Considered one of the top off-road motorcycle races in the world, the ISDE will be held in San Juan, Argentina, in November.

Off track, he is a cardiologist who has lived in Cipolletti since 2004.

The Desafío Ruta 40 is the fourth of fifth rounds on the 2023 W2RC calendar, returning after a four-year hiatus. The race will begin on 28 August and run through 1 September.