Al Henakiyah | BETH
Thursday, January 15, 2026

Stage 11 of the Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia got underway on Thursday, stretching from Bisha to Al Henakiyah over a total distance of 882 km, including 346 km of timed special stage, amid intense competition across all categories.

In the cars category, Sweden’s Mattias Ekström of Ford Racing claimed the fastest time of the stage, finishing ahead of France’s Romain Dumas, while Spain’s Carlos Sainz, also of Ford Racing, placed third.

In the overall standings, Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiyah of Dacia Sandriders maintained his lead with a cumulative time of 44 hours, 39 minutes and 59 seconds, holding an advantage of 8 minutes and 40 seconds over Spain’s Nani Roma. France’s Sébastien Loeb, also driving for Dacia Sandriders, remained third, 18 minutes and 37 seconds behind the leader.
Meanwhile, Saudi driver Yazeed Al-Rajhi (Bin Saeedan) continues his push toward the top as the rally approaches its decisive stages.

In the Stock category, Defender Rally continued to dominate the top three positions, with Lithuania’s Rokas Baciuška taking his fourth stage win. In the motorcycles category, American rider Skyler Howes of Energy Honda secured first place, narrowly ahead of his French teammate Adrien Van Beveren.

Argentina’s Nicolás Cavigliasso topped the Challenger category, while American Brock Heger claimed victory in the SSV class. In the trucks category, Czech driver Ales Loprais of De Rooy FPT posted the fastest time of the stage.

The rally continues on Friday, January 16, with Stage 12 running from Al Henakiyah to Yanbu, covering a total distance of 720 km, including 311 km of timed special stage, in what is expected to be one of the most closely watched legs of the rally.