Red Bull.com

Marc Coma’s future as a major Enduro star was settled almost as soon as the Spaniard could say the word ‘motorcyle’.

As a young boy Marc used to collected pictures of Dakar Rally riders and by the age of eight was emulating them, first in motocross but eventually in the punishing arena of Enduro competition. It was the right decision: he was Spanish Junior Champion in 1995, World Champion in the under-23 category in 1998, third in the Spanish championship in 2000, and second in 2001.

Then it was time for him to turn to the big rallies. Showing remarkable commitment and skill on his first Dakar as a privateer in 2002, he was picked up by the KTM works team for the following year’s event. Hard work translated into second place in 2005 – a year in which he also landed a world Enduro title.

It was in 2006 though that he finally landed the big one with a Dakar win. It was a feat he repeated in 2009, this time taking the win in the first Dakar to be run outside of Africa. Marc mastered the Argentinian Pampas, Chile’s Atacama desert and the dizzy heights of the Andes in what many called the toughest ever Dakar rally.

2010 was another great year for Marc with wins at Abu Dhabi, Sardinia, Rally Dos Sertoes and the Pharoah’s Rally. He was also named Cross Country Rally World Champion and in 2011 he won the Dakar for the third time, just in case you thought he didn’t have enough accolades to his name!

Keep up with Marc at his personal website.