Summarize

Nasser Al Attiyah appears on course to his sixth Dakar Rally victory following a dominant day for Ford and disastrous one for Toyota. Ford trio, Mattias Ekstrom, Romain Dumas and Carlos Sainz sped to a Factory Raptor 1-2-3 as Attiyah made best of the disadvantage of running up front in his Dacia. It was however a tough day for South Africans Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings, whose stab at victory came to a grinding halt to leave Aussie Toby Price the best of the Toyotas in eighth.

Thursday’s 346 kilometre special of mainly quick tracks with a little rock and sand for good measure to Al Henakiyah, was one of the year’s fastest. Factory Ford Raptor duo German Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist and Spanish four-time winner Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz were rapid out the blocks to lead through the opening waypoint. Belgian Guillaume de Mevius and Mathieu Baumel’s Mini sat third from Lategan and Cummings leading a train of Toyota Hiluxes.

Lategan lost time by 120 km to allow compatriot Saood Variawa and Frenchman Francois Cazalet’s rival SVR Hilux up to third from French Raptor crew Romain Dumas and Alex Winocq, de Mevius and Botterill. Sadly Lategan’s day went from bad to worse when his Hilux ground to a halt, losing an hour and a half before stopping again 10 km after rejoining. 

That left Ekstrom leading Variawa, Dumas, Sainz, de Mevius and South African Guy Botterill and Spaniard Oriol Mena’s SVR Hilux. Sébastien Loeb and Édouard Boulanger’s Dacia also paused twice but was soon back on track. Ekstrom still led Dumas and Sainz in a Ford 1-2-3 at 200 km from Variawa, his Portuguese teammates João Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro, de Mevius and Botterill. 

The order behind the leading Fords ebbed and flowed with Ferreira emerging best of the rest at the finish with American Seth Quintero and Andrew Short’s Overdrive Hilux up to fifth from de Mevius, Botterill, Variawa, Loeb and Roma. Overall leaders, Al-Attiyah, and Fabian Lurquin’s Dacia Sandrider came home 14th after a tough day opening the road behind Wednesday winners, Frenchmen Mathieu Serradori and Loïc Minaudier’s Century Factory CR-7, who scrapped to 17th on the day with SA teammates Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer provisionally 26th.

Nani Roma took four minutes out of Nasser Al Attiyah’s overall lead to sit 8 minutes 40 behind, with Sebastian Loeb up to third a further ten minutes adrift. Ford men Mattias Ekstrom and Carlos Sainz sit fourth and fifth with Serradori’s Made in South Africa a splendid sixth. After Lategan’s issues, Aussie former bike winner Toby Price and Armand Monleon’s Overdrive version is the best of the Toyota Hiluxes in eighth from Variawa, Botterill and Quinteiro.

Further back, Dutch driver Paul Sperings looked to be en route to a hat trick of T3 Challenger wins as Pau Navarro continues to lead overall. Jerome Gonzales led T4 SSV after WRX champion Johan Kristofferson led most of the way, but Brock Heger is dominating overall. Leader Rokas Baciuska was once again head of Defender teammates Stephane Peterhansel and Sara Price in Stock, and Kay Huznik continued to surprise in front of the Trucks, which Vitor Zala leads overall.

415 kilometres of Dakar 2026 remains on Friday and Saturday starting with 310 km back to Yanbu before a tricky final 105 km loop to the finish there. Your Dakar Car Report is powered by Toyota Gazoo Racing. Click here for the Dakar Bike Report.