Interview with World Rally Raid Champion Ross Branch

With three podium finishes and two top five results in five rounds of FIM World Rally Raid Championship competition held in some of the most exotic motorsports locations around the globe, Monster Energy’s Ross Branch (Hero MotoSports) stands alone at the top of the world’s best off-road motorcycle racers as this year’s WRRC champion.

Competing aboard the revolutionary Hero Rally 450 dirt bike, Branch opened the 2024 WRRC season back in January with an impressive 2nd place run at the famed Dakar Rally. Branch then followed that up in February/March with another runner up effort at the Abi Dhabi Desert Challenge. Two solid 5th place efforts at Portugal’s BP Ultimate Rally Raid and Argentina’s Infinia Desafio Ruta 40 would follow, with the season – and overall title – culminating with another podium (3rd) place effort at Morocco’s Rallye Du Maroc.

All totaled, the South African native Branch, 38, finished the ’24 WRRC season with 88 points, 12 points out front of fellow Monster Energy-backed racer Adrien Van Beveren (Honda) and 18 points better than Van Beveren’s teammate, Tosha Schareina (70).

For the ever-smiling, always positive and extremely tough/durable – while also extremely fast – Branch, this year’s WRRC title is the hallmark moment stamped on a competition off-road racing career that began in 2004 racing motocross, then graduated to off-road competition in Botswana in 2011 and has steadily grown, results-wise, ever since. 

Allowing the whirlwind last couple days to settle just a bit, Monster Energy, who’s partnered with Branch since 2021, caught up with him just long enough for a few questions before Branch was off to his next adventure.

Monster Energy: Ross! Congratulations from everyone at Monster Energy on your historic overall victory in the 2024 World Rally Raid Championship. Now that you’ve had a couple days to process the past year on the WRRC tour, what are your thoughts regarding your personal victory, as well as the milestone mark for Hero MotoSports?

Ross Branch: Thank you so, so much! I’m happy and I’m so proud of the entire team and I’m so happy I get to represent such an incredible brand like Monster Energy! Thank you for believing in me and giving me the opportunity of a lifetime. I will be forever grateful. 

ME: Looking back on the ’24 WRRC season, beginning with your amazing podium finish at the legendary Dakar Rally – another first for Hero – and running the global gambit through four more WRRC rounds, what are some of your most memorable moments on the way to your overall championship? 

RB: The Dakar rally was a huge moment for me, Hero and Botswana. It was a dream come true getting on the podium and it was a great start to the championship. 

ME: There’s a saying in motorsports… “To be in the race you’ve gotta be in the race.” What was your feeling when you started the season and first found out the Monster Energy/Honda Rally Team would not be contesting the second WRRC round in Abu Dhabi? And did you use that to motivate yourself throughout the series? 

RB: I was super disappointed to hear that the biggest team in World Rally Raid would not be on the start line. We enter the world championship to be the world champion and not having the big teams at the start of round two was disappointing. However, I knew I wanted to win the title and I knew Honda were coming back stronger than ever before, so I used this race to try and get maximum points. This was not to be as we had a mechanical issue in Abu Dhabi which in turn took the championship right down to the end. 

ME: One of the unsung heroes in this year’s championship is the work of the Hero MotoSports team, and in particular, the Hero Rally 450. Talk about the persons that surrounded you, enroute to your championship. And talk about the bike, where it was the first time you rode it to what you raced this season. 

RB: The team are the real Heroes. They have put so much effort into the rally program and have worked their butts off to give us the best bike possible. We have come a long way since I joined the Hero family and its starting to pay off as we are fighting for the podium at most of the rallies. I’m really excited for the future with Hero as they have some great plans for the near future. 

ME: Another key player in assisting you to the victory, especially at the final round in Morocco (Rallye Du Maroc), was your teammate, Jose “Nacho” Cornejo. Talk about the confidence Nacho gave you at the Rallye Du Maroc, on the fifth and final stage, knowing that he had your back – with the championship at stake – when you rolled out of the starting gate for the last time. 

RB: We have an incredible team at the moment, There was no doubt from either of my team mates that they would be there to help me no matter what happened. Basti (Sebastian Buhler) and Nacho are GREAT guys and the feeling between the teammates is at an all-time high. I’m grateful to have both these guys as teammates and they are instrumental to our team. 

ME: Between stages, at all the rounds, when you’d finally get to lay down at the bivouac for a few hours of precious sleep, what would go through your mind before you’d finally doze off? 

RB: Winning (laughter). It was such an up and down season for me personally, I had some really great rounds, and then I had some average rounds. So on the great rounds, I would be filled with excitement and ready to go out there and kick some ass. And on the not-so-great rounds, it was a bit harder to fall asleep as there was a bit of doubt in the air. I’m lucky to have the team of people around me that I do as they never once stopped believing in me and kept me strong on the down days and kept me focused on the good days. 

ME: Of all the five WRRC rounds – Dakar, Abu Dhabi, Portugal, Argentina and Morocco, which one was your favorite (and why)?

RB: I love Morocco. It’s a really tough race… like a mini Dakar. The Bivi (bivouac) is FULL with energy and excitement. All the teams are testing the new equipment for Dakar, championships are on the line. It’s chaos every day and is just a really crazy rally with so much navigation that the winner is not decided until the very end. It’s so good for our sport and rally fans love the energy and suspense. 

ME: Conversely, which one gave you the most trouble?

RB: Abu Dhabi. We had some mechanical issues that set us back. That played on the mind a bit and made the entire race difficult. And then getting my ass kicked in Portugal was not great. I tried everything to keep up with the top guys, but they out rode me and beat me fair and square. This motivated me to go home and work harder as I knew we needed to find some more speed. 

ME: So the 2025 World Rally Raid Championship schedule dropped recently. And included is the May 18-24 South African Safari Rally in your native South Africa. First off, how cool is that? And second, how do you think the locals will take to the WRRC – and their man Ross Branch competing? 

RB: (Laughter) HELL YEAH! I can’t wait. The South African Safari Rally is going to be so awesome. And for the first time in my rally career, I won’t be flying to the race - I will be driving only an hour from my house to race a world championship event. It’s going to be so good not only for me, but for our sport. Rally is still new this side of the world, so to have a World Championship round here… it will help it grow immensely. There will be soooooo many of my friends and family at that round, so it’s going to be epic and to ride with the number 1 plate at home is going to be so cool for me. Damn, I’m already so excited 

ME: Awesome, Ross. We certainly feel your enthusiasm! Again, and we can’t say this enough, everyone at Monster Energy is pumped for you and the Hero MotoSports team. Congrats again from all of us on your historic WRRC title. It was great for Monster Energy to be on board with you and we look forward to continuing our awesome relationship. 

RB: I can’t thank you guys enough for all the support. I’m so proud to represent you guys and so thankful to have you in my corner. Thank you, guys.

2024 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship (through 5 of 5 rounds) Overall Standings

1st – Ross Branch (Monster Energy/Hero), 88 points

2nd - Adrien Van Beveren (Monster Energy/Honda), 76 points

3rd – Tosha Schareina (Monster Energy/Honda), 70 points

4th – Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy/Honda), 63 points

5th – Jose “Nacho” Cornejo (Monster Energy/Hero), 41 points

6th – Pablo Quintanilla (Monster Energy/Honda), 37 points

7th – Sebastian Buhler (Monster Energy/Hero), 29 points

8th – Skyler Howes (Monster Energy/Honda), 26 points

9th – Aaron Mare (Monster Energy/Hero), 25 points

Up next… The 2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship kicks off in January (3rd through 17th) with the legendary Dakar Rally. For more info on WRRC and Monster Energy’s racers with Honda and Hero, link to: www.worldrallyraidchampionship.com