Despite a hefty crash yesterday which threatened his further participation in this year’s Dakar Rally, Northallerton engineer Robbie Wallace not only managed to complete today’s eighth stage but maintained his 42nd position overall and 32nd in the Rally 2 class.
Having got the all clear to continue from the rally medics, Robbie’s back injury meant he struggled to even get out of his tent this morning but eventually he took to the start for the event’s longest stage of the two weeks aboard the XRaids-supported 450cc KTM ahead of another gruelling 448 miles (721km) on the fringes of the desolate Empty Quarter around Wadi Ad-Dawasir.
Determined to make up as much time from the hour or so he lost in yesterday’s crash, whilst managing his battered body, Robbie sensibly settled for a safe pace and after another six competitive hours on the bike, amazingly came home in 47th position overall and 36th in Rally 2.
Robbie Wallace – “Today went a lot better than I expected after yesterday’s big crash. I had to get peeled out of my tent this morning by my dad as I couldn’t get up. I sat up and thought I wasn’t going to be able to continue as I was in so much pain with my back, but I took a load of painkillers and eventually managed to get out and onto the bike. Once I got going, I felt reasonably comfortable on the bike and every little bump hurt but not as much as it did yesterday. As the day went on, I managed to deal with it and kept topping up with tablets so at least it’s manageable and it’s looking fine going forwards. It was much harder work, though, but I’ll settle for that as I thought it was worst case scenario this morning, and my Dakar adventure was over for this year. But it wasn’t and now it’s time for some more rest and onto the second marathon stage which starts tomorrow.”
Tomorrow sees the start of the second of the event’s marathon stages which takes the remaining competitors from Wadi Ad-Dawasir back north and west to Bisha over two days whereby once again, an overnight refuge with minimalist food and shelter will be provided halfway through the 595 mile (959km) epic. It’s a major test of physical, mental and mechanical endurance with mainly rocky tracks on the opening part before the sand dunes take over prior to the end of SS9 on Wednesday evening.
Benavides Hits The Front
In the pre-event predictions, most observers expected a duel between Daniel Sanders and Tosha Schareina, the two riders who have dominated the 2025 season. Luciano Benavides’ name was mentioned among the outsiders, but following another stage victory today, the Argentinian is very much in the mix.
On the event’s longest stage, the Red Bull Factory Racing KTM pilot led from the front to come home for his third win of the 2026 event some 4’ 50” ahead of teammate Daniel Sanders and in doing so, took over the lead by a mere ten seconds.
However, both KTM riders are very much aware of the threat posed by the Monster Energy Honda HRC squad, particularly from Ricky Brabec who finished third on today’s stage and still occupies third in the overall standings, just 4’ 47” behind the leader. Teammate Tosha Schareina holds fourth position but is not totally out of the game despite a 20-minute deficit to the leader.
In the Rally 2 class, Mike Docherty’s misfortunes continued, probably the result of a crash at the very end of the stage which benefited Neels Theric, who was the fastest in the class for the third time this year on his Kove. In the overall rankings, American Preston Campbell remains in the lead, but his advantage has been reduced by two minutes by Toni Mulec, who is now just 9′ 36’’ behind.
Results after SS8 – Wadi Ad-Dawasir – Wadi Ad-Dawasir
Overall Position: 42nd (out of 97 remaining)
Rally 2 Position: 32nd (out of 86 remaining)
British Rider: No. 1 (out of 4 remaining)
Overall Time: 44h 07′ 07”
Time Behind Leader: 10h 48’17”
Distance Covered: 5327 km
Distance To Go: 2569 km
More updates as the event progresses and 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
