Dakar thriller right up to the finish line – Ricky Brabec loses what seemed like a sure victory after a navigation error – Luciano Benavides celebrates with a minimal lead
The 2026 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia ended with a real thriller in the motorcycle category. Ricky Brabec (Honda) made a crucial mistake in the final kilometers. Luciano Benavides (KTM) overtook him and claimed his first overall victory.
But first things first: after his stage victory yesterday, Brabec had a 3:20 minute lead over Benavides in the overall standings. Brabec started the final 105 kilometers at Yanbu, giving him the opportunity to collect time bonuses.
Benavides was second at the starting line, three minutes later. At first, everything went according to plan for Brabec. Although Benavides closed the gap slightly on the track, Brabec extended his lead in the overall standings, including time bonuses. But it remained close. After 43 kilometers, Brabec had a 28-second lead in the virtual intermediate standings, but after 65 kilometers, it was only 13 seconds. At kilometer 86, it was 22 seconds again.
But then the American squandered his third overall victory. “Two kilometers before the finish,” Brabec said angrily, “I don’t know – I took the wrong left turn. That put me in a bad situation.”
When Brabec and Benavides reached the finish line, the extent of the situation became clear. Benavides won the rally by two seconds. “I feel terrible,” said an annoyed Brabec. “We fought hard all week, and two seconds – that’s close. That’s motorsport.”
Including the prologue and the 13 stages, Benavides finished with a total time of 49 hours and 41 seconds. His two-second lead is the narrowest in the history of the Dakar Rally, which has been held since 1979.
“Always fight for your dreams and never give up,” cheered the Argentine. “I never gave up, and today—even though I lost time and saw that Ricky was pushing—I thought, ‘Okay, it’s not over until the last kilometer.’
”And in the last kilometer, he made a mistake, and I got it right. It’s incredible. I don’t understand what just happened. I trusted my navigation, and I saw the lights of the bivouac right where Ricky had lost his way.“
”At first, I thought it was just a tourist driver because I only saw one light approaching. He was still far away. But then I said to myself: That’s a tricky mark in the roadbook. I slowed down a bit, and then I saw him.”
“He couldn’t catch up with me because we were at the lake – he had to go all the way back and get back on the track. So I went full throttle to the finish line. I almost missed the last corner, it was really risky, but I made it and won by two seconds!”
It was Luciano Benavides’ first Dakar victory. His older brother Kevin Benavides won in 2021 with Honda and in 2023 with KTM. It was the 21st overall victory for the Austrian brand. There was also a victory with the GasGas brand.
Edgar Canet (KTM) won the 13th and final stage. In the final results, Tosha Schareina (Honda) took third place behind Benavides and Brabec. Skyler Howes (Honda) and Daniel Sanders (KTM) followed in fourth and fifth place.
