Bikaner, May 8 (IANS): Three-time Asia Pacific Rally Championship winner Gaurav Gill, Sandeep Sidhu, Lhakpa Tsering and Philippos Matthai led the four-wheeler brigade while Dakar Rally exponent CS Santosh, R Nataraj, Aishwarya PM and Imran Pasha topped the two-wheeler charge, in the 17th edition of the Desert Storm here on Wednesday.

As many as 130 participants were flagged off from New Delhi on Tuesday afternoon.

The motorsports fraternity also got the opportunity to cheer the comeback of the Army, who fielded ten teams in the four-wheeler category and three in the two-wheeler category.

The four-day Storm, in the Rally-Raid format, will take the competitors deep into the undulating dunes of the Thar desert in Rajasthan before culminating in Jaisalmer. Each will be tested by extreme weather conditions, tough terrain and navigational challenges as they make their way to the finish line.

There are three categories this year, with 34 teams (comprising of a driver and a co-driver) in the Xtreme Category, eight teams (comprising of driver & co-driver) in the Ndure Category, and 40 riders in the Moto Category.

Ten Special Stages have been conceived for the Xtreme category and seven for the Moto category, each tougher than the last one. The longest stage for them will feature a gruelling 200 km run in the extreme wilderness. The Ndure Category follows the TSD format and is the stepping stone for the drivers to take part in next edition's Xtreme.

The drivers and riders will be covering a distance of 2,000 kilometres over the next four days.