Rally

Toyota expects Kalle Rovanpera to be fighting for the World Rally Championship title on his full-time return this year as the Finn ramped up his Monte Carlo preparations this week. The two-time world champion will contest the full 14-round season this year after conducting a partial campaign last year, which still yielded four wins and helped Toyota secure a fourth consecutive manufacturers' ...Keep readingView the full article

Anyone who assumed the Dakar Rally had become too easy since leaving its spiritual home in Africa was taken aback by the first few days of the 2025 event in Saudi Arabia. The strategic decision to place the 48-hour stage near the very beginning caused havoc, taking out several heavyweights including four-time champion Carlos Sainz Sr (Ford) and WRC legend Sebastien Loeb (Dacia) - who exited in the ...Keep readingView the full article

Sebastien Loeb still has a chance to return to the Dakar Rally despite being forced out of the event by the FIA on safety grounds, Motorsport.com understands. Following a barrel roll in Tuesday’s third stage between Bisha and Al Henankiyah in Saudi Arabia, the Frenchman’s Dacia Sandrider was thoroughly inspected by FIA’s technical stewards. It was concluded that the roll cage on his ...Keep readingView the full article

Dacia star Sebastien Loeb has been forced to withdraw from the 2025 Dakar Rally as a result of a barrel roll on Tuesday, with the FIA deeming his car too damaged to continue. Loeb’s Dacia Sandrider flipped over at the start of the third stage between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, leaving pieces of bodywork scattered across the sand. Although the Frenchman was able to complete some quick repairs ...Keep readingView the full article

M-Sport-Ford new signing Josh McErlean believes 2025 is the best time since the Rally1 era began to make the leap to the World Rally Championship's top tier. McErlean is gearing up to make the jump from WRC2 to the top class this season after a somewhat surprise ascension to a full-time seat at M-Sport following Adrien Fourmaux's move to Hyundai. The 25-year-old Irishman is under no ...Keep readingView the full article

The FIA will carry out a thorough review of Sebastien Loeb’s Dacia to determine whether he can take part in the remainder of the Dakar Rally. Loeb’s Dacia Sandrider landed upside down in the sand following a rollover at the start of Tuesday’s Stage 3 between Bisha and Al Henakiyah. The nine-time World Rally Champion was able to set off again after removing part of the damaged bodywork ...Keep readingView the full article

Toyota driver Saood Variawa scored a first career stage win in Tuesday’s third test of the 2025 Dakar Rally, as team-mate Henk Lategan cemented his position in the overall standings. The Japanese marque's factory team led almost the entirety of the shortened 327km Stage 3 test between Bisha and Al Henakiyah in Saudi Arabia, though the top spot changed between several of its drivers. Seth ...Keep readingView the full article

World Rally Championship legend Sebastien Loeb suffered a brutal rollover at the start of Tuesday’s Stage 3 of the 2025 Dakar Rally. Loeb’s Dacia Sandrider landed upside down just 12km into the shortened 327km test between Bisha and Al Henakiyah, leaving him with a severely damaged car. The Frenchman was able to make some quick repairs and resume the stage after losing just eight ...Keep readingView the full article

Carlos Sainz Sr will take no further part in the 2025 edition of Dakar Rally after sustaining heavy damage to his Ford Raptor during the 48-hour Stage 2. Sainz’s car rolled over and landed on its roof after a dune jump 327km into Sunday’s test near Bisha in Saudi Arabia. Although the Spaniard was able to return to the bivouac and finish the stage on Monday, the FIA conducted checks on his ...Keep readingView the full article

Esapekka Lappi has offered an update on his future, stating that he is “still in talks” with Hyundai, while also looking at other options to continue his rallying career. Lappi became a free agent for 2025 after Hyundai announced a new strategy for its third World Rally Championship entry having opted to sign Adrien Fourmaux from M-Sport-Ford to pilot the car on a full-time basis. After ...Keep readingView the full article

Rokas Baciuska has inherited the victory on the Dakar Rally's second stage after being given time back by the FIA. The Lithuanian had originally been classified in sixth having run as high as fourth during the marathon 48-hour Chrono stage, which had been won by Overdrive Racing team-mate Yazeed Al-Rajhi despite a two-minute speed violation penalty being added to his time. The Saudi driver ...Keep readingView the full article

Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Nasser Al-Attiyah have been handed penalties by the FIA for exceeding permitted speed limits after finishing first and second in stage two of the Dakar Rally. Read Also: DakarDakar 2025, Stage 2: Al-Rajhi wins 48h test, Lategan takes lead and Sainz loses time Speed limits are dictated during non-timed liaison running, and stage winner Al-Rajhi was ...Keep readingView the full article

Carlos Sainz Sr has conceded his chances of winning the Dakar Rally for a second year in a row and fifth time overall are "gone" after a disastrous Stage 2. The Spaniard endured a number of issues during the challenging 48-hour chrono stage, rolling his Ford Raptor on the first day of the test. Read Also: DakarDakar 2025, Stage 2: Al-Rajhi wins 48h test, Lategan takes lead and ...Keep readingView the full article

Yazeed Al-Rajhi came out on top in the 48-hour chrono stage at the Dakar Rally as Henk Lategan took over the overall lead. Toyota privateer Al-Rajhi finished with a time of 10h32m54s, 4m29s up on Dacia's Nasser Al-Attiyah after the duo pulled clear on the first day of the mammoth stage. Factory Toyota driver Lategan took over from Seth Quintero at the top of the overall rankings after ...Keep readingView the full article

Ford insists Carlos Sainz Sr still has all to play for in the 2025 Dakar Rally despite losing heaps of time in a crash during the 48-hour chrono stage on Sunday. Having just crossed the seventh checkpoint at the 325km mark, Sainz’s Ford Raptor flipped over and landed on its roof over sand, leaving him stranded in the Saudi desert. His team-mate Mitch Guthrie Jr arrived on the scene soon ...Keep readingView the full article

Toyota privateer Yazeed Al-Rajhi moved into the lead of the Dakar Rally after the first half of the 48-hour chrono stage on Sunday, with Dacia’s Nasser Al-Attiyah in hot pursuit in second. Following a successful debut in 2024, ASO implemented the new marathon stage format again this time, with competitors facing an arduous 947km test over Sunday and Monday with limited external ...Keep readingView the full article

Carlos Sainz Sr’s Ford rolled over in the first part of the Dakar Rally’s 48-hour stage on Sunday, leaving him stranded in the desert. The four-time Dakar winner had started the second test of 2025 in eighth place but things went south for him just after midday in Bisha, Saudi Arabia. According to information received by Motorsport.com, the Spaniard was navigating a sandy area at the ...Keep readingView the full article

Nasser Al-Attiyah believes the Dakar Rally must change its format after finding Saturday’s opening stage “boring” due to the need of prioritising strategy over results. The 2025 edition began with a tough and “pure” 431km test around Bisha in Saudi Arabia, but several drivers elected to compromise their result to secure a better starting position for the 48-hour marathon stage that ...Keep readingView the full article

Carlos Sainz Sr admitted that he struggled to understand Saturday’s opening stage of the Dakar Rally, saying it was “very difficult to guess” and more akin to the event’s original roots. Leading Ford’s attack in the 431km test around Bisha in Saudi Arabia, reigning champion Sainz suffered an early setback when he lost time with a puncture on his new Raptor T1+. The matters were ...Keep readingView the full article

Toyota driver Seth Quintero has been promoted to first place in Saturday’s opening stage of the Dakar Rally after he stopped to help a stranded Laia Sanz. Quintero was originally classified as runner-up in the 413km test in Bisha, 50s down on provisional winner Guerlain Chicherit of X-raid Mini, after a late shuffle in positions at the front of the order. But, a few hours after the entire ...Keep readingView the full article