ALULA, Saudi Arabia — So far, the orange clan had dominated the field, with Edgar Canet and Daniel Sanders sharing success on three specials between them.
However, the battle has now taken a different turn, with a first victory for Monster Energy Honda HRC, specifically by Tosha Schareina, who won today’s stage in AlUla, where he enjoyed his first stage win in 2024.
The Spaniard, who finished runner-up to Sanders last year and on the outcome of the W2RC season, is positioning himself for the big marathon stage that awaits the favorites tomorrow. He has taken his place on the provisional overall podium, 1’13” behind his designated rival Daniel Sanders.
The Australian was obliged to open the way for much of the 421 km against the clock on the program. The only other rider to join him on the tracks was Ricky Brabec, who is proving to be another man in form at the start of this Dakar. Brabec has moved into second place in the general rankings, 1’07” behind Sanders, confirming the strength of the Honda team.
In the KTM team, Edgar Canet was slightly behind the pace compared to the first three days and dropped one place down the rankings to fourth, 8’46” behind the leader.
The situation in the Rally 2 category has changed dramatically since the start in Yanbu. After Neels Theric’s electrical problems, which caused him to lose 2 hours and 50 minutes on the prologue, and Harith Noah’s crash, it is now Tobias Ebster who has lost his chance to win the title for which he was one of the favourites (after 9th overall and 2nd in the R2 class in 2025).
Due to a hand injury following a crash, the Austrian rider is expected to withdraw: although the rules allow him to resume racing, he will no longer be able to make his riding count in the battle between Mike Docherty, today’s winner, and Martim Ventura, who is 3’32” behind the South African.
