Nasser Al-Attiyah wins the 2026 Dakar Rally with Dacia Sandrider

Nasser Al-Attiyah won the 2026 Dakar Rally with a 9:42 advantage over Nani Roma, securing his sixth victory in the most demanding event on the cross-country calendar. This result brings the 55-year-old driver closer to the record of eight titles held by Stéphane Peterhansel, who competed in the Stock category where he finished fourth.

Dacia achieved its first Dakar victory during its second year of the program with Prodrive as its technical partner. Al-Attiyah won Stages 6 and 12 at strategic moments when he needed to extend his lead, avoiding the mechanical problems that eliminated several other competitors during two weeks of racing in Saudi Arabia.

The rally had 10 different stage winners across five manufacturers. Toyota had won nine of 12 stages in 2025. Ford finished with three drivers in the final top five, Toyota won six stages but none of its cars finished in the top five overall, and Sébastien Loeb finished off the podium for the first time since his debut in 2016.

Photo By A.S.O

Ford finishes with three drivers in the top five

Ford finished with Roma second at 9:42, Mattias Ekström third at 14:33, and Carlos Sainz fifth at 28:30. Roma lost time early in the rally but recovered positions when he was retroactively awarded the win in Stage 5. He briefly led the overall classification in the second week but broke the front suspension in Stage 12, complicating his path to the eventual second place.

Ekström won four special stages (Prologue, Stages 7, 11, and 13) but the 30 minutes lost in Stage 9 due to navigation errors left him defending his position rather than fighting for the win. Sainz also led briefly but lost 45 minutes in Stage 10 due to a waypoint penalty combined with navigation errors. Mitch Guthrie won Stage 3 as Ford's only victory in the first week. The Raptor demonstrated competitive speed throughout the rally, but navigation errors cost valuable positions in the final standings.

Photo By A.S.O

Ekström retains podium in 37-second battle

Mattias Ekström started the final stage with a 29-second lead over Sébastien Loeb. Ekström won the 105-kilometer special around Yanbu, extending his margin to 37 seconds. Loeb had consistently climbed positions during the second week but couldn't close the gap in the last 105 timed kilometers.

Loeb failed to win a stage for the third time in his Dakar career - the other two occasions were 2017 and 2019 with Peugeot. Ekström started nine minutes ahead of Loeb in the starting order, giving him real-time information on the pace needed to defend his position.

Lucas Moraes, the reigning W2RC champion, finished seventh at 47:50 in his first participation with Dacia. Dacia's four-driver program for 2026 included Al-Attiyah, Loeb, Moraes, and Cristina Gutiérrez.

Toyota scores six wins but lacks consistency

Toyota won six of the 13 stages in the 2026 Dakar but none of its drivers finished within the top five overall. Toby Price was eighth at 52:07, Seth Quintero ninth at 1:15:02, and Saood Variawa tenth at 1:23:36.

Henk Lategan led the overall classification twice during the rally. He won Stage 4 and stayed within 12 minutes of Al-Attiyah until Stage 11, when a wheel nut broke costing him over four hours. Lategan had dealt with a damaged rear shock absorber in Stage 7 and power steering issues in Stage 9 before the final failure.

Toyota completed a 1-2-3-4-5 result in Stage 2, demonstrating pure speed in specific conditions. Quintero won that stage but lost massive time due to mechanical problems in Stage 3. Variawa won Stage 8 but had difficulties in Stage 7 that set him back in the overall classification.

Yazeed Al-Rajhi, the defending champion, retired in Stage 4 due to mechanical problems after already being knocked out of the fight by a series of punctures. Eryk Goczal achieved a historic victory for the Toyota customer team Energylandia in Stage 9, operated by his father Marek who finished 13th as the top independent driver.

Photo By A.S.O

Serradori sixth operating as a privateer

Mathieu Serradori finished sixth overall at 45:02 behind Al-Attiyah with his Century CR7, operating as a private driver without an official structure. Serradori works outside of motorsport during the year and focuses on rally-raid only in specific periods before major events.

Serradori completed the Dakar ahead of Moraes, who has an official contract with Dacia. Serradori's only stage win came in Stage 10 when several factory drivers made navigation errors. The result equals his sixth place from 2025 but this time with a stage win to his name.

Privateers rarely finish within the top 10 in the current Dakar era, where the resource difference between factory teams and independent structures determines results beyond the individual competitor's level.

Photo By A.S.O

Dacia achieves goal in second year

The Dacia project in the W2RC began in 2024 when the Renault Group chose this option for global positioning objectives outside the European market. Renault selected Prodrive as its technical partner for its previous experience in rally-raid with the BRX and Bahrain Raid Xtreme projects.

The Sandrider competes in the T1+ category with a V6 biturbo engine specifically adapted for rally-raid. This is the Renault Group's second overall Dakar victory. Claude Marreau won the 1982 Paris-Dakar Rally with a Renault 20 Turbo 4x4. Jean-Louis Schlesser added two victories with buggies equipped with Renault engines in 1999 and 2000.

Al-Attiyah reached 50 Dakar stage victories in history with his win in Stage 12, equaling the record shared by Peterhansel and Ari Vatanen. The three are the only drivers with 50 or more wins in the most demanding event on the cross-country calendar. With six victories using four different manufacturers (Volkswagen, Mini, Toyota, Dacia), Al-Attiyah solidifies his place among the most successful in rally-raid history.

Photo By A.S.O

Navarro repeats BBR success in Challenger

Pau Navarro won the Challenger category with his Taurus T3 Max by 23:22 over Yasir Seaidan. Navarro didn't win any stages but avoided problems during the two weeks, becoming the second Spaniard to win the Challenger category. Cristina Gutiérrez had won in 2024, also with a Taurus T3 Max from BBR.

Nicolás Cavigliasso, the reigning W2RC champion, was third by 1:17 ahead of Lucas del Río. Cavigliasso won two stages and climbed the classification after a complicated start. Dania Akeel stood on the stage podium seven times but victory eluded her on every occasion, sometimes by just a few seconds.

Photo By A.S.O

Heger repeats in SSV with Polaris

Brock Heger retained his crown in SSV with six stage wins and over an hour's advantage in the overall. Kyle Chaney was second in his first Dakar participation. The United States had two drivers in the top two places of the category. Polaris celebrates its third consecutive title despite the repeated counterattacks from Can-Am.

Xavier de Soultrait, a former motorbike rider converted to cars a few seasons ago, finished third. Johan Kristoffersson, with an impressive Rallycross record, finished eighth in his Dakar debut but was close to victory on the final stage to Yanbu.

Photo By A.S.O

Zala breaks Macik's streak in Trucks

Vaidotas Zala won the Truck category, giving Lithuania its first winner in the Dakar heavyweights. Zala resisted pressure from Ales Loprais and won by a 20-minute margin, ending the streak of Martin Macik who had won the last two editions.

Mitchel van den Brink was third despite leading the race before his drive shaft failed in Stage 10. Loprais won five stages but the clock favored Zala in the final classification. Macik had a Dakar to forget with mechanical problems in Stage 9 that knocked him off the podium, finishing fourth over four hours behind the winner.

Photo By A.S.O

Rokas Baciuska wins Stock category with Defender

Rokas Baciuska won the Stock category with his Defender Dakar D7X-R, arriving in Yanbu with almost a four-hour lead over Sara Price. The Toyota Land Cruisers managed to defend themselves with Ronald Basso third in the final classification. Peterhansel struggled more than expected and finished his 36th Dakar in fourth position in the Stock category.

Defender had an auspicious entry in its first Dakar participation with two cars on the podium and victory in its category.

Photo By A.S.O

W2RC returns in March with BP Ultimate Rally-Raid

The World Rally-Raid Championship returns to action with the second round of the 2026 season. The BP Ultimate Rally-Raid will be held in Portugal from March 17 to 22, giving teams two months to prepare before returning to competition.

Dakar Rally 2026 - Clasificación General

Pos	Nº	Pilotos	Clase	Equipo	Vehículo	Tiempo	Diferencia
1	#299	N. AL-ATTIYAH F. LURQUIN	Ultimate	The Dacia Sandriders	DACIA SANDRIDER	48:56:53	—
2	#227	N. ROMA A. HARO	Ultimate	FORD RACING	FORD RAPTOR	49:06:35	+0:09:42
3	#226	M. EKSTRÖM E. BERGKVIST	Ultimate	FORD RACING	FORD RAPTOR	49:11:26	+0:14:33
4	#219	S. LOEB E. BOULANGER	Ultimate	The Dacia Sandriders	DACIA SANDRIDER	49:12:03	+0:15:10
5	#225	C. SAINZ L. CRUZ	Ultimate	FORD RACING	FORD RAPTOR	49:25:23	+0:28:30
6	#214	M. SERRADORI L. MINAUDIER	Ultimate	CENTURY RACING FACTORY TEAM	CENTURY CR7	49:41:55	+0:45:02
7	#223	L. MORAES D. ZENZ	Ultimate	The Dacia Sandriders	DACIA SANDRIDER	49:44:43	+0:47:50
8	#204	T. PRICE A. MONLEON	Ultimate	TOYOTA GAZOO RACING W2RC	TOYOTA HILUX GR	49:49:00	+0:52:07
9	#203	S. QUINTERO A. SHORT	Ultimate	TOYOTA GAZOO RACING W2RC	TOYOTA HILUX GR	50:11:55	+1:15:02
10	#213	S. VARIAWA F. CAZALET	Ultimate	TOYOTA GAZOO RACING SA	TOYOTA HILUX IMT EVO	50:20:29	+1:23:36
11	#212	C. GUTIERREZ P. MORENO	Ultimate	The Dacia Sandriders	DACIA SANDRIDER	50:26:42	+1:29:49
12	#228	M. GUTHRIE K. WALCH	Ultimate	FORD RACING	FORD RAPTOR	50:34:18	+1:37:25
13	#206	M. GOCZAL M. MARTON	Ultimate	ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM	TOYOTA HILUX	50:34:20	+1:37:27
14	#218	G. BOTTERILL O. MENA	Ultimate	TOYOTA GAZOO RACING SA	TOYOTA HILUX IMT EVO	50:40:30	+1:43:37
15	#234	S. VITSE M. DELFINO	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	50:44:16	+1:47:23
16	#224	B. BARAGWANATH L. CREMER	Ultimate	CENTURY RACING FACTORY TEAM	CENTURY CR7	50:54:43	+1:57:50
17	#205	E. GOCZAL S. GOSPODARCZYK	Ultimate	ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM	TOYOTA HILUX	51:25:03	+2:28:10
18	#240	J. FERREIRA F. PALMEIRO	Ultimate	TOYOTA GAZOO RACING SA	TOYOTA HILUX IMT EVO	52:14:41	+3:17:48
19	#209	M. GOCZAL D. ORTEGA	Ultimate	ENERGYLANDIA RALLY TEAM	TOYOTA HILUX	52:18:22	+3:21:29
20	#232	L. SANZ M. GERINI	Ultimate	EBRO AUDAX MOTORSPORT	EBRO S800 XRR	52:28:02	+3:31:09
21	#202	H. LATEGAN B. CUMMINGS	Ultimate	TOYOTA GAZOO RACING W2RC	TOYOTA HILUX GR	52:54:38	+3:57:45
22	#230	C. LAVIEILLE V. SARREAUD	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	53:07:49	+4:10:56
23	#221	M. PROKOP V. CHYTKA	Ultimate	ORLEN JIPOCAR TEAM	FORD RAPTOR	53:20:27	+4:23:34
24	#239	S. AL QASIMI K. ALKENDI	Ultimate	SVR	TOYOTA HILUX IMT EVO	53:25:07	+4:28:14
25	#235	R. CHABOT G. PILLOT	Ultimate	OVERDRIVE RACING	TOYOTA HILUX	53:55:57	+4:59:04
26	#220	W. HAN L. MA	Ultimate	212 HANWEI MOTORSPORT	HAN WEI MOTORSPORT HWM T1+	53:58:24	+5:01:31
27	#243	B. LU H. SHA	Ultimate	JJ-SPORT	JJSPORT JJ3 T1+	54:40:46	+5:43:53
28	#210	H. GARCÉS J. LATRACH	Ultimate	OVERDRIVE RACING	TOYOTA HILUX	54:47:23	+5:50:30
29	#259	Y. TAO L. FU	Ultimate	JJ-SPORT	JJSPORT JJ3 T1+	55:30:44	+6:33:51
30	#208	L. BAUD L. BAUD	Ultimate	X-RAID TEAM	MINI JCW RALLY 3.0D	55:33:36	+6:36:43
31	#217	D. KROTOV K. ZHILTSOV	Ultimate	M-SPORT RALLY RAID TEAM	FORD RAPTOR	57:07:38	+8:10:45
32	#222	G. DE MÉVIUS M. BAUMEL	Ultimate	X-RAID TEAM	MINI JCW RALLY 3.0I	57:08:14	+8:11:21
33	#236	R. DUMAS A. WINOCQ	Ultimate	RD LIMITED	FORD RAPTOR	57:09:15	+8:12:22
34	#238	J. BERGOUNHE A. PES	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	57:34:55	+8:38:02
35	#267	M. MUSTERMANN M. ZAJC	Ultimate	MM Rallye	TOYOTA HILUX	59:10:14	+10:13:21
36	#252	B. FRETIN C. DUPLÉ	Ultimate	YDEO COMPETITION	CENTURY CR6	60:03:38	+11:06:45
37	#270	K. ALJAFLA A. RUDNITSKI	Ultimate	SVR	TOYOTA HILUX IMT EVO	60:12:40	+11:15:47
38	#258	F. COUSIN S. COUSIN	Ultimate	COMPAGNIE DES DUNES	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	60:16:43	+11:19:50
39	#246	K. TRNENY V. PRITZL	Ultimate	X-FORCE ACCR CZECH TEAM	FORD 150 EVO+	60:51:40	+11:54:47
40	#242	M. ZAPLETAL M. SYKORA	Ultimate	OFFROADSPORT	FORD 150 EVO	60:56:59	+12:00:06
41	#261	B. XU L. TIAN	Ultimate	JJ-SPORT	JJSPORT JJ3 T1+	62:15:32	+13:18:39
42	#248	M. GAMEIRO R. ROMERO	Ultimate	X-RAID TEAM	MINI JCW RALLY 3.0D	62:16:30	+13:19:37
43	#257	R. GROUWELS R. MEIJER	Ultimate	SHIVER Offroad	CENTURY CR7	64:14:30	+15:17:37
44	#272	J. TORRAS S. COSTA	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	64:18:24	+15:21:31
45	#268	S. TOTANI T. TOTANI	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	64:36:50	+15:39:57
46	#253	J. VAN KASTEREN M. SNIJDERS	Ultimate	SHIVER Offroad	CENTURY CR7	65:11:05	+16:14:12
47	#247	T. CORONEL T. CORONEL	Ultimate	TEAM Coronel	CENTURY CR7	65:11:51	+16:14:58
48	#241	G. PETRUS N. ABYKAYEV	Ultimate	PETRUS RACING TEAM	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	66:38:24	+17:41:31
49	#249	M. WILLEMS J. RIEZEBOS	Ultimate	BASTION HOTELS TEAM	TOYOTA HILUX	67:04:59	+18:08:06
50	#262	G. WANG Y. TIAN	Ultimate	LONGMAI MOTORSPORT	LONGMAI MOTORSPORT WGR T1+	69:25:14	+20:28:21
51	#231	F. JUBANY M. SOLA	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	69:26:41	+20:29:48
52	#254	D. KLAASSEN T. KLAASSEN	Ultimate	DKR / DaklaPack Rallysport	DKR EVO ULTIMATE	72:12:18	+23:15:25
53	#260	B. MIOT C. CRESPO	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	103:53:31	+54:56:38
54	#237	M. MORAES F. PEDROSO	Ultimate	SVR	TOYOTA HILUX IMT EVO	105:08:52	+56:11:59
55	#278	J. STRUGO K. MOREL	Ultimate	MD RALLYE SPORT	OPTIMUS MD RALLYE	110:16:57	+61:20:04
56	#215	B. ZHANG W. MA	Ultimate	JJ-SPORT	JJSPORT JJ3 T1+	134:07:07	+85:10:14
57	#245	P. TIAN S. HA	Ultimate	212HANWEI MOTORSPORT	HAN WEI MOTORSPORT HWM T1+	152:54:12	+103:57:19
58	#256	J. SCHRÖDER S. GREGORY	Ultimate	PS LASER RACING	WCT AMAROK	153:02:08	+104:05:15
59	#271	G. FAN K. ZHAO	Ultimate	JJ-SPORT	JJSPORT JJ3 T1+	183:55:24	+134:58:31
60	#265	N. HAYASHI S. HAIRSINE	Ultimate	THE GEAR SHOP CANADA TM	FORD BRONCO RAPTOR	196:54:24	+147:57:31
61	#266	P. PEÑATE D. MESA	Ultimate	NEBRIJA CANARIAS by TH-TRUCKS	CENTURY CR6	233:29:09	+184:32:16