The engines of the 47th Dakar Rally roared into life today for a high-speed Prologue Stage. The toughest race on the planet got underway with 29 kilometres against the clock around the Start Camp in Bisha.
Bisha, Saudi Arabia (03/01/2025) – Red Bull Desert Wings racers, putting themselves in pole position for a favourable starting position for Stage One tomorrow.
Ultimate Class
The stage is set for a Battle Royale in the Ultimate class with Toyota, Ford and Dacia all parking cars on the Prologue podium. Following home the Toyota Hilux of Prologue winner Henk Lategan was the V8-powered Ford Raptor T1+ of Mattias Ekström. The Swede clearly enjoyed making a big noise on the opening day of the 2025 Dakar Rally.
“I grew up with V8s in the DTM so I have a lot of experience with these engines. I think the sound of a V8 beats everything.” – Mattias Ekström
Completing the Prologue podium was the Dacia Sandrider of five-time Dakar winner Nasser Al-Attiyah. The Qatari was the first car onto the Prologue Stage and Al-Attiyah was quick to credit his co-driver Edouard Boulanger for finding the way to the finish line.
“Welcome to Dakar! There was a lot of navigation for Edouard and it was not so easy for us as the first car onto the stage.” – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Other ambitious drivers placed inside the Prologue’s Top 10 and will now get themselves a favourable starting position for tomorrow’s 500-kilometre Stage One. These drivers include Sébastien Loeb, Lucas Moraes, and Nani Roma.
“It was a good, clean stage for us with no big trouble. The feeling in the car was good. Now we can choose a good position for tomorrow.” – Sébastien Loeb
Missing out on today’s Top 10 but still very much in the race are Ultimate class drivers Toby Price, Seth Quintero, Cristina Gutiérrez, Mitch Guthrie Jr., Giniel De Villiers, Laia Sanz, Carlos Sainz and Guillaume De Mévius.
Bike Class
Daniel Sanders of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing was the fastest biker on the Prologue Stage. The Australian was the only rider to cover today’s 29km in less than 17 minutes. It’s a great start to the Dakar by the 2024 Rallye du Maroc winner, but Sanders knows this is a marathon and not a sprint.
“It was a pretty smooth run today. Hopefully it’s good enough to give me a good position for tomorrow. This is just the beginning of a long race.” – Daniel Sanders
It was also a special day for Sanders’s team-mate Edgar Canet who clocked the Prologue’s third fastest time. The rookie has hit the ground running in Saudi Arabia and goes into Stage One full of confidence after this impressive ride.
“My first Dakar Rally Prologue and I enjoyed it a lot. It was super fast and that’s what I like. I caught a rider in front and I think I made a good job.” – Edgar Canet
The KTM 450 Rally bikes of brothers Kevin and Luciano Benavides came through the Prologue Stage. Also completing today’s opening day on two wheels were Mohammed Balooshi and Harith Noah.
The 2025 Dakar Rally is now underway and from tomorrow the distances are extreme and the terrain unforgiving. Tomorrow’s Stage One takes the convoy on a timed 412-kilometre loop around the Bisha Start Camp with plenty of navigation puzzles to solve along the way.
SELECTED PROLOGUE STAGE RESULTS
ULTIMATE
1: Henk Lategan (ZAF) / Brett Cummings (ZAF) – Toyota – 15:28
2: Mattias Ekström (SWE) / Emil Bergkvist (SWE) – Ford – 15:29
3: Nasser Al-Attiyah (QAT) / Edouard Boulanger (FRA) – Dacia – 15:48
4: Rokas Baciuška (LTU) / Oriol Mena (ESP) – Toyota – 15:49
6: Sébastien Loeb (FRA) / Fabian Lurquin (BEL) – Dacia – 16:01
7: Lucas Moraes (BRA) / Armand Monleon (ESP) – Toyota – 16:03
8: Nani Roma (ESP) / Alex Haro (ESP) – Ford – 16:03
11: Toby Price (AUS) / Sam Sunderland (GBR) – Toyota – 16:12
15: Seth Quintero (USA) / Dennis Zenz (DEU) – Toyota – 16:18
BIKE
1: Daniel Sanders (AUS) – KTM – 16:51
3: Edgar Canet (ESP) – KTM – 17:03
7: Luciano Benavides (ARG) – KTM – 17:31
24: Kevin Benavides (ARG) – KTM – 18:29
46: Mohammed Balooshi (UAE) – Fantic – 20:10
57: Harith Noah (IND) – Sherco – 21:08
QUOTES
Nasser Al-Attiyah: “Welcome to Dakar! There was a lot of navigation for Edouard and it was not so easy for us as the first car onto the stage.”
Lucas Moraes: “It was good to have a clean run. My co-driver Armand was key to keeping us on the right track. I guess we’ll have a good position for tomorrow.”
Mitch Guthrie Jr.: “I’m excited to finally get my first stage in this car under my belt, even if it was just a short one. The extra speed is so much fun.”
Carlos Sainz: “The stage was good and there were no surprises. The car performed like it has done in testing and the shakedown.”
Daniel Sanders: “It was a pretty smooth run today. Hopefully it’s good enough to give me a good position for tomorrow. This is just the beginning of a long race.”
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