The penultimate stage of the 2026 Dakar Rally comes to a close with a new race leader with one more stage to go.
American Monster Energy Honda HRC Factory Rally ace Ricky Brabec took a decisive stage win today at the 2026 Dakar Rally, besting Red Bull Factory KTM front-runner Luciano Benevides by a mere three minutes and 20 seconds to put himself in prime position for his third Dakar Rally win.
Brabec's strategy played out yesterday held him back in starting position today - prime placement for making up the :23 second gap Benevides had going in to today. But, Benevides didn't make it easy by racing to the front of the pack early and gathering over two minutes of bonus time on the long, fast stage. The win and time gain will see Brabec lead out a short 100km-ish day tomorrow to the final checkered flag of the rally. If Benevides can find more than three minutes to gain tomorrow, this will go down to the wire, but it's a heavy lift in such a short stage.
We hear from the top racers in RallyGP, check in with Original by Motul class leader Benji Melot, and hear from yesterday's stage winner Skyler Howes after a demanding day saw his Honda expell ALL OF ITS OIL, yet still finish. Wow!
One more stage to go tomorrow and this 2026 Dakar Rally is done!