The legendary David Walsh is calling it a career. With a record-tying fifth consecutive Finke Desert Race bike victory and a Baja 1000 finisher medal under his belt, Walsh announced his retirement on Tuesday.

“What a wild ride it has been over the past 16 years of racing,” he began in an Instagram post. “I never thought I could win the Finke desert race, let alone 5 in a row. Growing up watching and camping track side it was always Christmas in June for me and I knew I wanted to race. I have been truely supported with incredible sponsors and people in my corner to help achieve everything that I have.

“But, as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end and I’m excited to move onto another chapter of experiencing finke with my family – finally getting to enjoy the fun of watching and camping track side like I did in my childhood.”

Walsh scored five bike podiums at Finke throughout the 2010s in 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018. From 2019 onward, he became the only rider to win as he notched five in a row (the 2020 race was canceled due to COVID-19).

At what turned out to be his final Finke in 2024, he tied Randall Gregory’s run from 1991 to 1995 for the most bike triumphs in a row. The five victories are second most for a rider in race history behind Toby Price’s six.

He has also dabbled as a co-driver at Finke, calling the shots for Brent Smoothy.

In November, Walsh made what could be considered his swan song start when he and an ensemble cast of Australia’s off-road bike stars entered the Baja 1000. He raced under the Team Australia banner (coincidentally a name that Price also uses for his SCORE program) alongside his younger cousin Liam, four-time Finke bike champion Ben Grabham, and twice Australasian Safari winner Jacob Smith; the older Walsh previously did the 1000 as part of Santiago Creel’s team.

David started the race and ran the first 220 miles before handing off to Grabham, then took over the KTM from Smith from RM 800 to the finish. 2023 SCORE Pro Moto champion Juan Carlos Salvatierra’s #1X team helped service the Aussies’ #10X (which Salvatierra uses when not defending a title) after he exited the race. Team Australia would finish fifth overall.

While his riding days are behind him, he will still be involved with Finke for 2025 as a consultant for STE KTM Racing Team. Liam Walsh, who is 11 years younger than his cousin, and Callum Norton will be mentored by David.

“I’ve known Jason for a while now and have been teammates with Callum in the past too, so I knew it was going to be a great group of people,” Walsh stated. “To combine the team and be able to put our heads together for the Finke event and make the outfit stronger overall is great.

“For me, in stepping away from racing, I’ve been going down to the track to help the guys out, helping them with set-up, as well as lending them some advice that I’ve learned over the years in racing. To combine STE and KTM, who have been an unbeatable force out here in the desert, is really massive, and I’m excited to get to race weekend and see what both Callum and Liam can do on track.”

Featured image credit: KTM