Branch takes World Championship lead

The race hosts the second of the five rounds of the 2024 W2RC as the local biker moves into pole position for the first time in history for a local biker and also a first for Indian manufacturer, Hero MotoSport Rally Team. He finished behind teammate, Aaron Mare of South Africa in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.

Branch has started off well in the race that concluded on Saturday as he finished the prologue stage in the lead. He finished sixth in stage one and kept his place in the top 10 with an improvement to a fourth spot on stage two. The Jwaneng biker bagged a stage three win to claim the lead of the race. On the final day, Branch finished second behind Mare to clai second position in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.