Nasser Al-Attiyah extends lead to 15 minutes in Dakar with victory in Stage 12

Nasser Al-Attiyah won Stage 12 of the 2026 Dakar Rally between Al Henakiyah and Yanbu, completing the 311 timed kilometers in 3:21:52. The result extends his lead in the overall classification to 15:02 over Nani Roma, with just one 105-kilometer stage remaining in a loop format around Yanbu.

Al-Attiyah started 17th in the running order and took the lead around the 100-kilometer mark when he overtook Mitch Guthrie. Mattias Ekström briefly displaced him at the third waypoint, but Al-Attiyah regained the top position over the next 50 kilometers. The gap remained under a minute until the final waypoint, where Al-Attiyah extended his margin to 1:38 before the final stretch.

Mitch Guthrie finished second on the stage, 1:04 behind, with Toby Price third at 1:25. Mattias Ekström was fourth at 1:49, gaining valuable time in his battle for the final podium spot.

Photo By A.S.O

Overall Classification Situation

Al-Attiyah is first with 48:01:51 of accumulated time. Nani Roma is second at 15:02, Mattias Ekström third at 23:21, and Sébastien Loeb fourth at 23:50. Carlos Sainz occupies fifth place, 36:33 behind the leader.

With 105 kilometers of special stage remaining, Al-Attiyah can lose up to 15 minutes and still win his sixth Dakar title. Nani Roma would need Al-Attiyah to suffer a major mechanical problem to challenge for the win. The final stage will be a timed loop starting and finishing in Yanbu, the shortest format to close a rally of this magnitude.

50th Win Ties Historic Record

This was Al-Attiyah's 50th stage win in Dakar history, tying the record shared by Stéphane Peterhansel and Ari Vatanen. The three are now the only drivers with 50 or more stage wins in the world's most demanding rally.

Ari Vatanen achieved his 50th win in 2004 in Er Rachidia with a Nissan, eight years after his previous victory. Stéphane Peterhansel reached the same number in 2024 with his Audi RS Q e-tron, adding 33 bike wins to his 17 car wins up to that point.

Peterhansel is competing in the 2026 Dakar in the Stock category, so both he and Al-Attiyah have the opportunity to reach 51 wins on Saturday.

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Ekström Regains Third Place After Closing Gap on Loeb

Mattias Ekström set the fourth-fastest time on the stage, cutting 3:24 from Sébastien Loeb's lead in the battle for the final podium step. Ekström now holds a 29-second advantage over Loeb in the overall standings.

Sébastien Loeb finished seventh on the stage with a time of 3:27:05, losing 5:13 to Al-Attiyah. Loeb has never finished a Dakar off the podium in his previous participations, but he will need to recover half a minute in Saturday's 105-kilometer sprint.

Ekström will start nine minutes ahead of Loeb in the starting order for the final stage, giving him real-time information about his rival's pace. The 29-second difference represents less than three-tenths of a second per kilometer in the remaining special.

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Roma Completes Stage with Broken Suspension, Holds Second Place

Romain Dumas pulled over in the first meters of Stage 12 to wait for Nani Roma and accompany him during the special. Ford's strategy aimed to protect Roma from a potential attack by Sébastien Loeb on the clock.

The plan worked on track, but Roma reached the end of the stage with the right front suspension of the Ford Raptor broken. The misaligned wheel made the car difficult to control. Roma finished eighth with a time of 3:29:14, but he had 2 hours and 45 minutes to complete the 183-kilometer liaison to the Yanbu bivouac or face elimination.

The Ford team replaced the damaged components with parts from Romain Dumas's Raptor, completing the repair in one hour. Roma headed towards Yanbu but ran out of fuel en route. Laia Sanz towed him to a gas station. Roma handed in his roadbook approximately one minute before the 16:47 deadline.

Photo By A.S.O

Dumas competes with Ford Racing under his own RD Limited structure since the team contacted him in September for the full W2RC program. Ford has three drivers in the top 5 of the overall classification: Nani Roma second, Mattias Ekström third, and Carlos Sainz fifth. The American team's battle is to defend Roma's second place and maintain the third position with Ekström.

The Stage 13 will be a 105-kilometer timed loop around Yanbu, deciding the 2026 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia.