YANBU — The 2026 Dakar Rally concluded this past Saturday on the shores of the Red Sea, marking a historic chapter in rally-raid history. After 13 grueling stages and nearly 8,000 kilometers across the Saudi Arabian desert, Nasser Al-Attiyah and Luciano Benavides emerged as the ultimate victors in a finale defined by record-equalling feats and the narrowest of margins.
In the Ultimate (Car) category, Nasser Al-Attiyah (The Dacia Sandriders) secured his sixth career Dakar title, finishing 9 minutes and 42 seconds ahead of Ford’s Nani Roma. Al-Attiyah’s victory was a double milestone: it marked the first-ever Dakar win for the Dacia brand and saw the Qatari legend reach his 50th career stage win. Ford Racing celebrated a massive resurgence with a double podium, as Roma took second and Mattias Ekström secured third, proving the Raptor T1+ is a formidable force for the future.
The Bike category delivered the most dramatic finish in the rally’s history. Argentina’s Luciano Benavides (Red Bull KTM) claimed his maiden Dakar title, defeating Honda’s Ricky Brabec by just two seconds after over 49 hours of racing. Brabec, who was in a tight duel until the end, suffered a minor navigational error in the closing kilometers of the final 105km sprint, allowing Benavides to snatch the crown in a photo-finish that left the Yanbu podium in shock. Spain’s Tosha Schareina (Honda) rounded out the podium in third.
Other category winners included Pau Navarro (Challenger), Brock Heger (SSV), and Vaidotas Žala (Trucks), while Rokas Baciuška made history by winning the Stock class in the debut of the Defender Dakar D7X-R. Of the 317 vehicles that started in Yanbu two weeks ago, 247 successfully crossed the finish line.