STAGE 6 Highlights
Dakar 2026 | Stage 6 | HAIL > RIYADH
A gritty aftertaste of the sand for Sanders
- Daniel Sanders was on a roll on the first big sandy stage leading to Riyadh just before the rest day. Starting from Hail in third position, the defending champion swiftly caught Nacho Cornejo and then his teammate Luciano Benivades on his way to finishing the special stage alone and gobbling up a considerable chunk of the bonuses on offer to the opener (2’40’’), providing him with sufficient time to pull away in the overall rankings. However, the Australian, probably got carried away by his enthusiasm and neglected to respect a speed limit, which was a mistake that will cost him a six-minute penalty.
- Although he was beaten on the tracks, Ricky Brabec will reap the rewards of his consistency at the highest level, both on the day and since the start in Yanbu. The American secured his 12th stage win on the Dakar and confirmed his status as Daniel Sanders‚ biggest rival. The Monster Energy Honda HRC rider is aware of how far he still has to go to win a third title, as he is still 45 seconds behind the Australian leader, but remains the only Rally GP rider to have made no mistakes so far
- The day before, it was Tosha Schareina’s turn to be penalised for a mistake. The Spaniard was unable to fully redeem himself, even though his starting position (as 5th rider to begin) gave him an opportunity to make up for it. In the end, the worst was avoided as Sanders was caught out by the speed cameras, but his initial battle plan did not include spending the rest day at the foot of the podium, 11’56’’ behind his major rival, though he is less than a minute behind Luciano Benavides in third place.
- The Rally 2 class witnessed the return of Mike Docherty, after breaking his front wheel on stage four. The Emirati resident, who is a sand specialist, showed off his skills by beating all his rivals in the class and also taking overall 4th place in the stage rankings. The South African, who was heavily penalised two days ago (62 hours 30 minutes), no longer has any hope of triumph in the Rally 2 overall rankings, but is still determined to put on a show.
- Some things occur with almost unfailing regularity. Nasser Al Attiyah’s stage victories are among them, like Japanese cherry trees in bloom in spring or the people of northern France heading to the French Riviera’s beaches when summer arrives. As regards the Qatari driver, his successes are even more predictable when a special takes place among the dunes, the terrain on which he has conquered his five titles on the Dakar. From the start in Hail this morning, the conditions were therefore right for Nasser to go on the attack, especially as he was the 15th driver to begin. At the finishing line, having shown the extent of his skill without overdoing it, he picked up his 49th stage on the Dakar to continue a series of 19 consecutive editions with a minimum of one special success to add to his roll of honour, including when he dropped out of the rally early. His performance today puts him at the top of the overall rankings on the rest day, after overtaking and then pulling away from Henk Lategan to leave the South African 6’10’’ behind.
- As they reached the Saudi capital, this good news was accompanied by more for the Dacia team, which achieved its first one-two finish on the Dakar thanks to the second place obtained by Sébastien Loeb. His mission to climb back up the overall rankings is underway, albeit at a moderate pace, but the man from Alsace has still moved from 8th to 6th place, 17’36’’ behind Al Attiyah.
- Behind Al Attiyah and Lategan, the top trio in the overall rankings is completed by Nani Roma, who has not enjoyed such success since 2019, at the end of the Dakar’s South American era. The Catalan driver, trailing the race leader by 9’13’’, finds himself as the leading representative of the Ford clan, who will be capable of exerting maximum pressure for the rest of the rally. Carlos Sainz in his Raptor is still in the reckoning for outright triumph, in 4th place 11’49’’ behind Al Attiyah, as is Mattias Ekstrom, occupying 5th, 12’11’’ behind the Qatari.
STAT OF THE DAY: 20
The 2026 edition of the Dakar was billed as one of the most open in the race’s history and the first week of competition has definitely lived up to this claim. Five different drivers have won on the first six stages and just as many have led the overall rankings. On arrival in Riyadh, which will host the rest day, 26 minutes and 46 seconds separate Nasser Al Attiyah (in 1st) from his Dacia team-mate, Lucas Moraes (in 10th). There has never been as close a top ten at this stage of the Dakar on the editions contested in Saudi Arabia (from 2020 to the present day), nor in South America (2009–2019). The most recent gap as small dates back to 2006, 20 years ago! At the time, 11 minutes and 26 seconds separated the leader, Giniel de Villiers, from tenth place, namely Nani Roma. Two decades later, the Ford driver is again in this Top 10, but in third place this time. He is not the only competitor in this situation: fourth today, Carlos Sainz was second at the time, showing just how durable the two Spaniards are!
PERFORMANCE OF THE DAY: CASALE, A ONE-MAN ORCHESTRA
Ignacio Casale knows how to do everything! He discovered the Dakar in 2010, in the cockpit of a truck alongside his father Francisco and then the following year took part on a bike for his second participation, which he finished in 40th position. However, it was when he participated in the quad category that the Chilean became a genuine winning machine. Casale gobbled up 23 stage victories, with three triumphs in the category as well (in 2014, 2018 and 2020). However, Ignacio likes to mix things up and took part behind the wheel of a truck in 2021 and 2022, finishing 9th in an era when the leading places were dominated by the Russian Kamaz drivers. After a pause in 2025, the driver who has since changed to the Challenger class has begun to play a leading role once more. Just before leaving to travel to Yanbu, his wife gave birth to twin girls, which seems to be bringing him luck. Today, he picked up his first stage victory in the class through beating Dania Akeel by 38’’. However, it looks to be much more difficult for him to follow in the footsteps of his illustrious countryman Chaleco Lopez who, has triumphed in the SSV category (in 2019 and 2021) as well as the Challenger class (in 2022) because on the rest day Casale finds himself in 6th place in the race hierarchy, 1 hour 53 minutes behind leader Pau Navarro.
CRUSHING BLOW OF THE DAY: SEAIDAN FALLS FROM THE TOP
If there was one competitor especially intent on reaching Riyadh in the lead, it was Yasir Seaidan. The man from the Saudi capital, who led during stages 3 and 4, lost his place to Pau Navarro who led by 4’26’’ on the departure from Hail. On a stage entirely made up of dunes today, Yasir Seaidan wiped out his deficit and regained leadership of the race after 253 km by one second in front of the Spaniard. Fifty kilometres further on, he lost three quarters of an hour after being forced to stop and work on his machine. Dania Akeel, his countrywoman, picked up the torch but the Saudi driver fell just 38’’ short of stage winner Ignacio Casale. In the overall rankings at the halfway point, Yasir Seaidan has dropped off the podium which he had occupied since stage two. Following the premature exit of Yazeed Al Rajhi and Dania Akeel’s mishaps that have deprived her of the fight for the podium, Yasir Seaidan is this year’s last hope of a Saudi title.
TRUCKS ACTION
MEGA-GALLERY
Quelle / Source / Pictures / Bilder: Dakar Rally, A.S.O
