Dakar Stage 5: Highlights from the 48-Hour Marathon Stage

January 8, 2026, saw the conclusion of the grueling 48-hour marathon stage with the Dakar Stage 5, a 371km timed special from the remote bivouac back to Ha’il. Competitors, running on worn tires and machines patched overnight without crew help, faced rocky tracks, dunes, and navigation challenges that amplified any earlier mistakes.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

The day was about survival and smart pacing, leading to major shifts as some frontrunners paid the price for aggression while others gained big.

Cars Category (Ultimate Class)

Ford Performance staged a comeback, with Mitch Guthrie leading a strong showing to win the stage in his Raptor T1+. The team locked out multiple top spots, closing the gap on the leaders. Henk Lategan (#202, Toyota) opened the road and lost time but clung to the overall lead, now with a narrower margin over Nasser Al-Attiyah (#299, Dacia).

Bikes Category

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Luciano Benavides (#77) rode a perfect stage to claim victory, taking over the overall lead in dramatic fashion. Hero MotoSports’ Ignacio Cornejo (#11) finished a strong second, positioning himself as the closest challenger, while teammate Daniel Sanders (#1) completed a KTM-heavy podium. The marathon’s toll was evident, with previous Honda leaders dropping back due to time losses and penalties.

Cars Stage 5 Results (Top 10)

Pos.	N°	Driver / Co-Driver	Team	Time	Behind	Penalty
1	228	Mitch Guthrie / Kellon Walch	Ford Racing	03h 54′ 46”
2	227	Nani Roma / Alex Haro	Ford Racing	03h 55′ 52”	+ 00h 01′ 06”	00h 01′ 10”
3	221	Martin Prokop / Viktor Chytka	Orlen Jipocar Team	03h 57′ 00”	+ 00h 02′ 14”
4	223	Lucas Moraes / Dennis Zenz	The Dacia Sandriders	03h 58′ 24”	+ 00h 03′ 38”
5	226	Mattias Ekström / Emil Bergkvist	Ford Racing	04h 00′ 07”	+ 00h 05′ 21”
6	225	Carlos Sainz / Lucas Cruz	Ford Racing	04h 00′ 09”	+ 00h 05′ 23”	00h 01′ 00”
7	240	Joao Ferreira / Filipe Palmeiro	Toyota Gazoo Racing Sa	04h 00′ 53”	+ 00h 06′ 07”
8	234	Simon Vitse / Max Delfino	Md Rallye Sport	04h 01′ 01”	+ 00h 06′ 15”
9	218	Guy Botterill / Oriol Mena	Toyota Gazoo Racing Sa	04h 01′ 49”	+ 00h 07′ 03”
10	203	Seth Quintero / Andrew Short	Toyota Gazoo Racing W2rc	04h 03′ 54”	+ 00h 09′ 08”

Cars Overall After Stage 5 (Top 10)

Pos.	N°	Driver / Co-Driver	Team	Time	Behind	Penalty
1	202	Henk Lategan / Brett Cummings	Toyota Gazoo Racing W2rc	20h 36′ 44”
2	299	Nasser Al-Attiyah / Fabian Lurquin	The Dacia Sandriders	20h 40′ 01”	+ 00h 03′ 17”	00h 02′ 00”
3	226	Mattias Ekström / Emil Bergkvist	Ford Racing	20h 42′ 22”	+ 00h 05′ 38”	00h 00′ 20”
4	227	Nani Roma / Alex Haro	Ford Racing	20h 43′ 43”	+ 00h 06′ 59”	00h 01′ 10”
5	225	Carlos Sainz / Lucas Cruz	Ford Racing	20h 45′ 17”	+ 00h 08′ 33”	00h 01′ 10”
6	228	Mitch Guthrie / Kellon Walch	Ford Racing	20h 53′ 07”	+ 00h 16′ 23”	00h 00′ 10”
7	223	Lucas Moraes / Dennis Zenz	The Dacia Sandriders	20h 53′ 55”	+ 00h 17′ 11”
8	219	Sébastien Loeb / Edouard Boulanger	The Dacia Sandriders	20h 54′ 39”	+ 00h 17′ 55”
9	214	Mathieu Serradori / Loïc Minaudier	Century Racing Factory Team	20h 56′ 24”	+ 00h 19′ 40”
10	221	Martin Prokop / Viktor Chytka	Orlen Jipocar Team	20h 56′ 39”	+ 00h 19′ 55”

Bikes Stage 5 Results (Top 10)

Pos.	N°	Rider	Team	Time	Behind	Penalty
1	77	Luciano Benavides	Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing	04h 05′ 16”
2	11	Ignacio “Nacho” Cornejo	Hero Motosports Team Rally	04h 09′ 07”	+ 00h 03′ 51”
3	1	Daniel Sanders	Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing	04h 11′ 06”	+ 00h 05′ 50”
4	7	Bradley Cox	Sherco Rally Factory	04h 12′ 38”	+ 00h 07′ 22”
5	9	Ricky Brabec	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	04h 14′ 32”	+ 00h 09′ 16”
6	66	Neels Theric	Kove Factory Racing	04h 14′ 33”	+ 00h 09′ 17”
7	98	Mason Klein	Hoto Factory Racing	04h 18′ 11”	+ 00h 12′ 55”
8	26	Konrad Dabrowski	Duust Rally Team	04h 19′ 13”	+ 00h 13′ 57”
9	85	Preston Campbell	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	04h 19′ 43”	+ 00h 14′ 27”
10	16	Toni Mulec	Bas World Ktm Team	04h 21′ 59”	+ 00h 16′ 43”

Bikes Overall Standings After Stage 5 (Top 10)

Pos.	N°	Rider	Team	Time	Behind	Penalty
1	1	Daniel Sanders	Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing	20h 58′ 10”
2	9	Ricky Brabec	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	21h 00′ 12”	+ 00h 02′ 02”
3	77	Luciano Benavides	Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing	21h 04′ 05”	+ 00h 05′ 55”
4	68	Tosha Schareina	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	21h 10′ 09”	+ 00h 11′ 59”	00h 10′ 00”
5	11	Ignacio “Nacho” Cornejo	Hero Motosports Team Rally	21h 16′ 48”	+ 00h 18′ 38”
6	10	Skyler Howes	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	21h 27′ 27”	+ 00h 29′ 17”	00h 02′ 00”
7	42	Adrien Van Beveren	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	21h 50′ 41”	+ 00h 52′ 31”
8	7	Bradley Cox	Sherco Rally Factory	21h 59′ 41”	+ 01h 01′ 31”
9	85	Preston Campbell	Monster Energy Honda Hrc	22h 14′ 13”	+ 01h 16′ 03”
10	46	Ross Branch	Hero Motosports Team Rally	22h 22′ 03”	+ 01h 23′ 53”	00h 06′ 00”