Sanders on a roll with Saturday Stage One win at Dakar

2025 Dakar Rally

Stage 1 Chrono Part 1 – BISHA > BISHA

After Friday’s Prologue, 413 kilometres of special stage was on the menu today as the Dakar Rally got underway on Saturday with its first real test of the 2025 event in Saudi Arabia. It was an early start for riders on stage one as they prepared to face a multitude of fast tracks through valleys, canyons and wadis with many thorny bushes thrown in for good measure.

Aussie Daniel Sanders repeated his Prologue performance to grab another win across the gravel tracks and rock-strewn sandy plateaus. Having started the day in a strategic 23rd – mid-pack, Sanders was fastest to kilometre 150 after chasing down the earlier starters and from there held that lead, finishing two-minutes clear of the next fastest rider – Honda’s Ricky Brabec, despite a hefty crash along the way.

Daniel Sanders – P1

“That was pretty tough! There was no wind in the morning, so it was pretty tough to make some passes. And then, once I got past Canet at about kilometre 70, the dust was gone and I had to catch up to Ross and the Honda boys in front. So by the time we got to the refuel, there were a few navigation mistakes, but I tried to correct it as quick as possible and just focused on the road book. There was a lot of dust, so maybe my decision to start further back wasn’t the best, but we all caught each other up after a while and everyone was fighting to get ahead. I had to ignore the roadbook for a while and just focus on my speed and standing my ground. It was a fun start though and I’m interested to see how the 48-hour stage will go – I’m feeling great!”

Keeping the pressure on from the start, Ricky Brabec led the way over the early kilometres before eventually being overhauled by Sanders. Brabec demonstrating that he is back to full fitness after sustaining an injury at last year’s Rallye Du Maroc.

Ricky Brabec – P2

“Stage one is in the books. It was good to get a big stage under our belts even though it’s only one of twelve. I’m happy to be at the finish of stage one, now we’e going to get some rest and get ready for the chrono stage that happens tomorrow. I think it’s about 950 kilometres, so two days stuck in the desert with no assistance. I think today we did pretty good, tomorrow is not going to be easy but I think we’ll have to keep an eye on the situation out there.”

Hero’s Ross Branch took third, 22-seconds off Brabec, but a minute and a half clear of his next closest competitor.

Skyler Howes had an eventful first stage as he stopped to assist Sebastian Bühler who had fallen off badly at the 68 km mark. Come the end of the stage that time tending a fellow competitor in need was reinstated, leaving the American fourth, having maintained a consistent rhythm behind Brabec over the latter half of the stage.

Skyler Howes – P4

“I was catching up to Sebastian and was in his dust and then the next thing our GPS was making a siren noise and I could see he had just picked himself up and was injured. I stopped with him and hit the rescue button as he had broken his collarbone. I spent a few minutes there on the side of the trail and then I hopped back in behind Ricky where it was just super dusty for the rest of the day.”

Tosha Schareina was on a charge as he looked to keep within touching distance of Sanders and although during the stage he reduced the deficit to 18 seconds, once he got to the Bisha finish line he was 4′42″ off the fastest time to take fifth.

Tosha Schareina – P5

“Today was really hard with 400km to start this Dakar rally. It was pretty good for me during the stage as I passed other riders in the dust. It was sketchy in some parts but it was a combination between some fast parts and some slow and rocky sections. My focus tomorrow is my first 48 Hour Chrono. I’m happy with the team, bike and how I rode so I think we can push and fight tomorrow.”

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Following on from his seventh-place result in the prologue, Luciano Benavides remained unfazed by the demanding opening stage and delivered a cool and collected ride across the varying terrain. Maintaining a solid rhythm from start to finish, Luciano steered his KTM 450 Rally to sixth, team mate Benavides having to settle for 17th.

Luciano Benavides – P6

“That was a crazy but cool stage to start with! I struggled with the feeling in my hand for a while, so I had to manage that. The navigation was really tricky at some points, but I just tried to stay calm and focused. It worked well, and I’m happy with how today went. The next few days will be testing, but I can’t wait.”

Kevin Benavides – P17

“Today’s 413 km special was honestly really tough. The navigation was tricky, which I didn’t expect for the first stage, but I stuck to my plan of starting off steady and really focusing on my roadbook to avoid any mistakes, so I think that paid off. I pushed where I could, and it is great to be back racing so I’m happy with today overall. Today was hard, but I am looking forward to tomorrow’s chrono stage!”

Chilean rider Pablo Quintanilla not only struggled with some of the navigation but also front end issues with his Honda CRF450 RALLY, but rode hard to finish the stage in seventh, keen to iron out any small problems before the start of stage two.

Pablo Quintanilla – P7

“Well we finished the first day of the race, it was a pretty long and hard stage. The navigation was very very difficult, also the terrain was rocky, tricky with a lot of technical sections and many bushes. It was not a good day for me as I was struggling a little bit with the bike since the morning, I had some issues with the front end so the handling was really heavy, but we will check now to find out why. It’s just the first day but I’m happy to arrive in one piece so now I’ll rest before a long, long day tomorrow.”

Birthday boy Adrien Van Beveren had a day to forget as a crash just 15 kilometres into the stage saw his air-bag go off and the road book push-button stop working. Although unhurt, it was from then on in a very long day for the 34-year-old as he then had to operate the road book manually which slowed his progress to the end of the stage.

With his eighth place finish, the Frenchman will be the first Monster Energy Honda HRC rider off the line for Stage Two as the starting order for the 20 Rally GP bikes will be reversed for the start of the 48 Hour Chrono. He’ll therefore set off in thirteenth position with the aim to keep his crown of winning the huge two day test just as he did in 2024.

Adrien Van Beveren – P8

“It was a tough day for me as I crashed 15km into the stage. In the bushes I didn’t see a turn, I got myself on the rear of the bike to try to avoid the crash but couldn’t. My airbag did its job so I didn’t get hurt, but from then I was in the dust of the guys in front so I didn’t risk it too much. Then the guys caught me up, I was then in their dust because I let them pass. I spent my day in the dust but I think I rode better at the end and this is what I will try to remember. I had no road book push button from the crash so I had to do it manually and this didn’t help to set a good rhythm. But it is what it is, this is Dakar, we will make the best of it.”

Dakar rookie Edgar Canet made his mark on his Dakar Rally debut, the 19-year-old carrying his momentum into Saturday, leading the Rally2 class for most of the day. Despite building up an advantage of nearly 14 minutes over his nearest rival, a navigation error after the refuelling stop cost Edgar precious time, which saw him ultimately finish as runner-up in Rally2, and 15th overall.

Edgar Canet

“Today’s stage was good! In the first part of the stage, my speed was good and I didn’t get lost, which was great as the navigation was hard. After the refueling, though, I got lost in the same place for a while, which unfortunately cost me the win in Rally2 today. Overall, I have a great feeling with the bike, I am learning a lot and I’m looking forward to the rest of the race!”

Aussie Toby Hederics of the BAS World KTM Racing Team finished the day in 29th, just over 45 mins off leading pace. Andrew Houlihan of Nomadas Adventure finished the stage 81st, 2h13m off the fastest time.

TT road race star James Hillier crashed today at 290km after hitting a hidden rock in sand that threw him off. No injuries other than a broken nose that would not stop bleeding. Hillier will sit out tomorrow’s 48hr chrono stage under doctors orders and aims to continue again on Tuesday.

Two-time Dakar winner on two wheels, Australian Toby Price, came home 12th once again in the Ultimate category on four wheels, mirroring his Prologue result alongside co-driver Sam Sunderland. The pair copped a two-minute penalty along the way on Saturday due to electrical problems with their Toyota that forced them to get a tow, otherwise they would have finished Saturday’s Stage ninth quickest. Hopefully the electrical gremlins can be chased down overnight.

Ex MotoGP rider Danilo Petrucci is competing in the Trucks category and finished stage one in sixth place with team-mates Claudio Bellina and Marco Arnoletti, with the trio also holding down sixth outright.

Tomorrow, riders face one of the longest days of the event for the first half of the 48-hour chrono stage. Setting off from Bisha, riders will aim to complete as much of the 947-kilometre timed special stage as possible, before staying in a bivouac away from their teams overnight.

2025 Dakar Rally Stage One Results – Top 10

2025 Dakar Rally Standings after Stage One

2025 Dakar Rally Route/Schedule