David Walsh claims third Finke crown

David Walsh has won the Finke Desert Race for the third time straight, clocking a record-breaking time to beat Jacob Smith and Jack Simpson.

The Alice Springs local started from third on the grid with Smith (Husqvarna) and Simpson (Husqvarna) beating him in Saturday’s Prologue.

But Walsh (KTM) took control of the race on the Day 1 leg from Alice Springs to Finke, arriving at the overnight stop three minutes ahead of his rivals.

On the return leg to Alice, Walsh conceded 42 seconds on his KTM 500 EXC-F, but his Day 1 heroics meant he secured the win with plenty of time to spare.

The KTM rider’s final overall time was 3h35m45s – a time which eclipsed the previous record set by Toby Price by 11 minutes.

Smith and Simpson joined Walsh on the podium, while Korey McMahon (GASGAS) and Brodie Waters (KTM) rounded out the top five. Sherco’s Callum Norton, a pre-race favourite, exited the race on Day 1 after his bike gave up.

Four-time winner Ben Grabham made a triumphant return to the top 10, finishing 9th aboard his KTM 500 EXC-F while also winning the Seniors 40-44 class.

In the Car division, six-time bike winner Toby Price made it two in a row on four wheels, piloting his Mitsubishi trophy truck to a comfortable victory with co-driver, Jason Duncan.

The iconic Finke Desert Race, which was first run in 1976, took on a different look and feel in 2022 following the tragic death of a spectator in last year’s edition.

Organisers introduced a number of new rules including mandatory previous race experience for competitors and stringent camping and spectating rules. So far there has been no reports of any serious incidents in 2022.