After running the last two Dakar Rallies with RS Moto, Paolo Lucci will be back at BAS World KTM Racing Team for the 2027 edition. If he can acquire the funding, he hopes to compete in September’s Rallye du Maroc to prepare for Dakar.

“Those who are in the sport or follow it closely know how complicated it is for a privateer to compete in the Dakar every year, and even more so prepare properly on the economic side. I’m trying to invest everything I can in training and races,” Lucci explained. “For this reason, I decided to return to racing with BAS Dakar Team to race in the best possible conditions at the Dakar 2027.”

Lucci was with BAS World from the 2022 Rallye du Maroc to the 2024 Dakar, which included running the full 2023 World Rally-Raid Championship. Although he never won a race for the team, he scored podiums in all but one race en route to a runner-up finish in the 2023 Rally2 standings. His final race ended with a DNF.

He eventually signed with RS Moto for 2025, racing the new Honda CRF450RX Rally with factory parts from HRC. However, his two Dakars with the team were plagued by mechanical issues; the 2026 race saw him retire from Stage 6 because the rear mousse gave way. He finished 76th in Rally2 with a best daily showing of third in Stage 10.

Although RS Moto is a Honda Racing Corporation partner, Lucci was still a privateer at the end of the day and had to scrounge up the money himself. BAS World offered him a more stable home, thus his return.

Lucci has launched fundraisers on Indiegogo and GoFundMe to help cover the expenses.

“Sure, the choice is a bit more complicated concerning the budget level,” he continued. “For this, I decided to create a campaign where you can buy t-shirts, posters, photos, and other stuff related ot the world of Dakar and the desert. For those who instead want to make a donation, there’s the GoFundMe. These campaigns will serve to finance a W2RC race in Morocco which will be very important for preparation.”

Featured image credit: Antonin Vincent / DPPI / ASO