Dakar Rally Stage 1 – Bisha > Bisha

Aussie Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders dominates, finishing over two minutes ahead of Ricky Brabec

Stage 1 of the Dakar Rally featured 413-kilometre timed special around Bisha that combined sand, dirt, and gravel tracks with complex navigation challenges. Heading south from Bisha, the elevation gradually increases, reaching approximately 1,300 metres. Midway through the stage, competitors faced a demanding challenge navigating winding canyons and climbing rocky, sand-covered plateaus.

The route tested both focus and sand-riding abilities. Once again, Australia’s Daniel Sanders proved unbeatable. Having posted the fastest Prologue time, Sanders earned the privilege of selecting his starting position for the first stage and opted to start mid-pack in 23rd, aiming to capitalise on the tracks laid by earlier competitors. Delivering a performance reminiscent of his 2022 Dakar Rally start, where he claimed victories in the opening two stages, Sanders created a significant gap between himself and the rest of the field, finishing over two minutes ahead of his nearest rival Ricky Brabec. Sanders now holds a commanding lead, with a substantial 25-minute cushion separating him from the rider in 10th place.

Ross Branch of Hero Motorsports secured third place, trailing Sanders by approximately two and a half minutes. He will aim to close the gap in the demanding 48-hour chrono stage to follow.

Spanish rider Tosha Schareina was a strong contender throughout the stage, closely trailing Sanders at various waypoints. However, a navigation error at kilometre 332, attributed to a roadbook mistake, caused Schareina to lose significant time, resulting in a fourth-place finish, over four minutes behind Sanders. Schareina and his team have requested a time compensation from the race organisers, citing similar precedents in past events.

Sanders’ teammate Edgar Canet completed the stage with a time of 5 hours, 30 minutes, and 42 seconds, placing him 14th in the overall standings after a promising 3rd place finish in the Prologue .

The stage was not without incidents. Sebastian Bühler of Hero MotoSports crashed at the 68-kilometer mark, sustaining a shoulder injury that forced him to retire from the rally.

TT racer James Hillier crashed on a hidden rock at the 290km mark, suffering a broken nose. He will sit out tomorrow’s chrono stage on doctor’s orders.

Australian rider Andrew Houlihan experienced a high-speed crash at approximately 90 km/h after hitting a rock at the 115-kilometre mark. Despite the severity of the fall, Houlihan managed to continue.

In the overall standings, Sanders leads with a cumulative time of 4 hours, 58 minutes, and 18 seconds. Brabec holds second place, 2 minutes and 22 seconds behind, while Branch is in third, 2 minutes and 38 seconds adrift.

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!”

Ricky Brabec– P2: “It was a really difficult day. I couldn’t even imagine starting up front and opening. These guys did an excellent job. The road book was just, you know, tricky. A lot of quick notes, but a lot of vegetation where you couldn’t really, you know, find a smooth rhythm. You’re always making 90-degree quick corners, getting smoked by thorn bushes, and that was it was more of a painful stage than enjoyable, but I’m happy to be at the finish line of the first stage. The last 20 kilometres were really, really tricky. I spent the time with Luciano, and we did a good job. The strategy today was to make a big push and try to do as well as I could to start back. You know, I wanna stay close with the main group. I’m happy to start the chrono tomorrow.”

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 – P5: “Many bushes on the road. I didn’t have any mistake, any crash. I just tried to do my best in the dust. I think there was a little mistake in the road book, so that cost me 5 minutes. I hope I can get it back later. We knew that 400 K for the start of the Dakar is not at all easy. I didn’t do the 48 h chrono last year, so everything is new for me, but I think we are ready and we are strong.”