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Reigning Finke champion David Walsh has called time on his illustrious desert racing career, with the current ‘King of the Desert’ retiring from the sport after claiming a record-matching five-consecutive victories.

Walsh’s five triumphs came in succession, having claimed five consecutive wins beginning in 2019, and then again from 2021-2024 after the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the pandemic. He captured a further four podium finishes, solidifying his name as one of the all-time greats of the race.

The 34-year-old now sets his sights on both family life as well as a mentorship role with the newly formed STE KTM Racing Team, providing assistance and insight to both team riders Callum Norton and Liam Walsh, who will spearhead KTM’s effort for this year’s event.

“The decision for me to retire had been playing in my mind for some time,” Walsh told MotoOnline. “I’m a father of four now, and the risk versus reward factor for me has changed a little bit, being a bit older. I had to come to terms with the fact that I wasn’t really prepared to put my life on the line and do what I needed to do to win the event.

“I knew that once I had those thoughts in my head, that it was probably time to hang up the boots, and that was the executive decision I made.”

Lending insight and input into the younger generation of riders was of particular interest to Walsh, who wants to remain active in the sport in life after racing.

“I still really enjoy riding, and I love the event, so if I can be involved and help the riders with mentoring, then I am more than happy to do that,” he added.

“The STE and KTM partnership is really exciting, it’s a great group of people, and I think between Callum and Liam, you could throw a blanket over those two on who could take out the win this year. I’m excited to get to race weekend and see what both the boys can do out on track.”