SS12 Al Henakiyah – Yanbu – 409km Liaison, 311km Stage
Robbie Wallace has managed to get to the end of today’s penultimate stage of the 2026 Dakar Rally and barring any problems on the road liaison section back to the base in Yanbu this afternoon, just a short stage remains tomorrow for the Northallerton, North Yorkshire rider and his hopes of a gold medal.
Still struggling with the back injury sustained in a crash on Sunday, the 28-year-old electrical engineer – who repairs overhead power lines when not racing his X-Raids supported KTM 450 – looks to have held his position within the top 45 overall after another gruelling 450 miles (720km) on the bike today.
Now just a blast around the Red Sea base of Yanbu in western Saudi Arabia awaits Robbie tomorrow totalling 88 miles (141km) with the stage comprising a distance of 65 miles (105km) which is the equivalent of an off-road trip from Northallerton to Doncaster whereafter he hopes to climb the finisher’s ramp and claim a deserved medal after over 5,100 miles (8031km) covered during the two-week adventure.
Keep an eye on Robbie’s social media later today for his updated report, a comprehensive update will follow tomorrow when Robbie hopefully achieves his dream of a Dakar finish.
Brabec In Command
Monster Energy Honda HRC rider Ricky Brabec has just arrived at the Yanbu bivouac where the 2026 Dakar Rally will end tomorrow. The American boasts a 3′ 20’’ lead over Luciano Benavides (Red Bull Factory Racing KTM) in the overall rankings with the battle for victory now looking to be between these two if they avoid problems.
Brabec will start the final stage tomorrow three minutes ahead of his closest rival but even if Benavides catches up with him along the way, the Argentinean will still have to overtake Brabec to have any hope of winning the Dakar, not forgetting that the Honda rider will have pocketed bonus time thanks to opening the way.
Results after SS12 – Al Henakiyah – Yanbu
Overall Position: 44th (out of 96 remaining – provisional)
Rally 2 Position: 34th (out of 83 remaining – provisional)
British Rider: No. 1 (out of 4 remaining – provisional)
Overall Time: 65h 51′ 44”
Time Behind Leader: 17h 43’ 32”
Distance Covered: 7890 km
Distance To Go: 141 km
More updates via the links below.
https://www.dakar.com/
https://www.facebook.com/dakar
https://x.com/dakar
https://www.dailymotion.com/Dakar
https://www.instagram.com/dakarrally
https://www.tiktok.com/@dakar
Notes to Editors.
The 48th edition of the Dakar Rally will see around 780 competitors from all over the world, including 115 in the motorcycle category, converge on Yanbu on the shores of the Red Sea in western Saudi Arabia. 2026 sees a significantly reworked route offering competitors a fresh challenge across Saudi Arabia’s vast deserts. The 2026 Dakar Rally will feature 13 full stages, plus the traditional Prologue to commence proceedings on January 3 that will help determine the starting order for the first full day of action. The rally will be split by a rest day in the capital Riyadh on Saturday 10 January, allowing competitors some vital recovery time before the decisive second week. Bike competitors will cover 7,896 kilometres over two weeks, including 4,826km in the form of competitive special stages, with the remainder made up of transport sections. With nearly 5,000km of timed running, the 2026 edition will be one of the longest Dakars in terms of competitive distance, making it potentially one of the toughest events in the rally’s recent history. The finish is scheduled for Saturday 17 January 2026 with the final stage around Yanbu.
ENDS
