With his gofundme total sitting at just over Ā£45,000 ā€“ still almost Ā£40,000 short of his target ā€“ British off-road hero David Knight has pushed the ā€˜goā€™ button on his 2021 Dakar Rally plans and will be in Saudi Arabia for the start on January 3.

ā€œWith the amount of support Iā€™ve had I figured I just needed to get on and do it,ā€ he said. ā€œI can organise some fund-raisers myself afterwards if I need to but the totalā€™s still going up ā€“ it went up by two grand yesterday.

ā€œLast week I was just like ā€˜sod it, Iā€™m goingā€™ so I spoke to Henk [Hellegers] who runs the team and told him that heā€™ll get paid but it might take a few months. I need to go and do it and worry about [the money] later ā€“ if I donā€™t go now I never will.ā€

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The 42-year-old three-time FIM Enduro World Champion has been overwhelmed by the show of support from his fans.

ā€œItā€™s amazing how people have helped out ā€“ itā€™s very special. Itā€™s hard times for everyone but people are still sticking a few quid in here and there. It will make me dig deeper than ever before.

ā€œI need to go and ride steady, make sure I finish and then I can make a plan. Obviously, I donā€™t want to do anything daft and spanner myself but at the same time I donā€™t want to dawdle around and finish 50th. Iā€™ve got to find a happy medium and go at a pace that Iā€™m happy with that will get me to the finish without risking too much.ā€

Knighter thinks the long, solitary days that go hand-in-hand with big desert rallies will suit him ā€“ and hinted that if all goes well he might be back for a more focussed attempt on the Dakar podium in the future.

ā€œIā€™ve always excelled on long events that Iā€™ve ridden on my own ā€“ thatā€™s where I love to be and thatā€™s why the rally thing is good. On the shorter events, by the time you get into your flow the race is almost finished so I like it when I can get into my own mindset and keep pushing on. When you can forget about everything apart from just riding the bike, thatā€™s what I enjoy the most. Thatā€™s why I used to like all the long extreme races.

ā€œIā€™ve just got to use my head. I know itā€™s dangerous and Iā€™m going to get my arse twitching now and again but Iā€™ll ride steady and try and get to the finish. Once Iā€™ve finished one then I could maybe have a better go next time.ā€

To give to Knighterā€™s fighting fund go to https://uk.gofundme.com/f/knighter-to-dakar-2021