Dacia abandons rally-raid and Al-Attiyah seeks new team for Dakar 2027

Dacia confirmed the closure of its rally-raid program at the end of the 2026 season, leaving Nasser Al-Attiyah, winner of this year's Dakar, as well as Sébastien Loeb, Lucas Moraes, and Cristina Gutiérrez without a team for 2027. The French team will contest all rounds of the World Rally-Raid Championship this year before closing the Sandrider project in November.

Renault announced both departures in the same statement

François Provost, president of Renault, simultaneously announced Alpine's exit from the World Endurance Championship and the closure of Dacia's rally-raid program, both at the end of 2026, dismantling the sporting plan Luca de Meo had designed for the group. The Viry-Châtillon factory, which developed engines for Alpine in WEC and Formula 1, will lose its primary function now that the French team uses Mercedes power units in F1 from this season, putting approximately 350 jobs at risk according to Viry-Châtillon mayor Jean-Marie Vilain.

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The 2026 W2RC is the program's final objective

Dacia will contest all W2RC 2026 rounds with three Sandrider prototypes aiming for the world title they lost in 2025, when Al-Attiyah forgot to stop the clock at the control post after the special stage of the Rally of Morocco despite having won the event, an administrative error that cost him a penalty which handed the championship to Toyota. The team scored two victories that year (Dakar and Abu Dhabi) but finished second in the manufacturers' standings.

The French team currently holds first place in the manufacturers' championship with 160 points, leading Ford (127) and Toyota (97). Al-Attiyah tops the drivers' standings with 73 points, followed by Mattias Ekström (52) and Nani Roma (45). The next round of the calendar is the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid scheduled for March 17-22, the first opportunity to extend their advantage before the closure in November.

They signed the world champion months before announcing the closure

Lucas Moraes, the 2025 W2RC champion, joined Dacia for the 2026 season. The team presented the four-driver lineup (Al-Attiyah, Loeb, Moraes, and Gutiérrez) as their commitment to winning the Dakar and the world championship. Nothing in the official communication suggested this would be the program's final season. Al-Attiyah competed in an MD Rallye Sport Optimus at the Baja Hail weeks after winning the 2026 Dakar with Dacia. The Qatari raced that Saudi calendar event in a different vehicle to the Sandrider, an unusual move for a driver who had just won rally-raid's most important race.

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WRC entry ruled out

François Aupierre, marketing director of Dacia Sandriders, ruled out the team planning to enter the World Rally Championship. Rumors had emerged because the new WRC27 regulations aim to attract manufacturers with reduced costs and greater flexibility in specifications, which made it plausible that Dacia would redirect rally-raid resources toward the traditional rally championship. Dacia will not participate in any other motorsport discipline. Renault will concentrate its sporting resources exclusively on Formula 1, where Alpine will compete as a customer team using Mercedes engines from this season.

Audi closed its program in 2024 under the same pattern

Audi closed its rally-raid program after winning the 2024 Dakar with Carlos Sainz, citing spare parts issues although it redirected resources toward its Formula 1 entry. Both Audi and Dacia share the same model of factory projects closed without selling units to private teams, unlike Toyota and Ford which sell their platforms to customers. Dacia sold zero Sandriders to third parties during their rally-raid participation.

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Toyota and Ford remain alone in the Ultimate category

Toyota Gazoo Racing and Ford M-Sport will be left as the only official manufacturers in the Dakar's Ultimate category for 2027 following Audi's withdrawal in 2024 and now Dacia's in 2026. The four drivers from the French team will need to find seats in those structures or with private teams, with Cristina Gutiérrez facing a market that has contracted dramatically with the departures of two manufacturers in less than two years.