The 26th edition of the Rallye du Maroc officially kicked off with a lightning-fast 19-kilometer prologue just outside of Fez. On a short yet technical course, the favorites immediately made their mark, while the Dutch delegation, ten strong, opened their campaign with solid performances across the board.
Brabec breaks the streak, Sanders eyes Grand Slam
In the bike category, Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy Honda HRC) proved he didn’t come to Morocco just to make up the numbers. On a prologue filled with high-speed sections, tricky ruts, and a shallow river crossing, the American clocked the fastest time at 12:48, edging out teammate and prologue specialist Tosha Schareina by just one second.
Close behind the Honda duo were the KTM factory riders Daniel Sanders (+5 seconds) and Luciano Benavides (+10 seconds). Sanders, already crowned the 2025 W2RC champion, is now targeting a unique Grand Slam with his fifth consecutive rally victory this season.
In Rally2, Michael Docherty (BAS World KTM) took the win, narrowly beating Edgar Canet (Red Bull KTM) by one second. Tobias Ebster (Hero) followed in third, 21 seconds behind. Rally3 rookie Thomas Zoldos of France impressed with the fastest time in class, ahead of Noa Sainct, son of the legendary Richard Sainct.
From the Netherlands, Ian Olthof (HT Rally Raid, Honda) came home 35th in Rally2, just over three minutes behind Brabec. Teammate Deen Munsters posted the 94th fastest time, highlighting that their transition to the new Honda platform still requires fine-tuning. This is the team’s debut with the bike in Morocco, and they gained valuable experience on the fast and technical terrain near Fez.
Al-Attiyah sets the tone, Lategan and Moraes on the back foot
In the car category, Nasser Al-Attiyah (The Dacia Sandriders) got off to a dream start. The Qatari, a seven-time winner in Morocco, blasted through the prologue in 11:56, eleven seconds quicker than Joao Ferreira (Toyota Gazoo Racing). His teammate Sébastien Loeb secured third, 17 seconds adrift.
Behind this leading trio, Mathieu Serradori (Century) and Ford factory drivers Ekström, Roma, and Sainz were all in close pursuit. W2RC title contenders Lucas Moraes and Henk Lategan, both in Toyotas, finished eighth and fourteenth respectively, not a reason to panic yet, but Al-Attiyah has clearly come out swinging.
Dutch entrants under the spotlight
The Netherlands is once again well represented at the Rallye du Maroc, with ten competitors across the bike, car, Challenger, and truck categories. In the Ultimate car class, multiple Dutch duos took to the stage. Janus van Kasteren and Marcel Snijders brought their Century CR7 home in 41st overall, 1 minute and 33 seconds behind Al-Attiyah. Michiel Becx and Wouter de Graaff went slightly quicker, placing 31st, while Roger Grouwels and Rudolf Meijer clocked the 61st time.
Other results in the car class included Maik Willems and Arjan van Tiel (Toyota Hilux) in 79th, Rik van den Brink and Gydo Heimans in 63rd, and Mike van Eikeren with co-driver Jasper Riezebos finishing 73rd in the T1.2 subclass.
In the Challenger class (T3), Dutch names were also prominent. Kees Koolen and Jurgen van den Goorbergh took a cautious approach, finishing 68th overall. Paul Spierings and Jan Pieter van der Stelt showed good pace with a 35th-place finish, while Lex Peters and Mark Salomons ended the day in 81st. Rine Streppel and Lisette Bakker, racing for Arcane Racing, completed the prologue in 97th and will be aiming for steady progress toward Erfoud.
In the truck category, Kay Huzink made a strong impression alongside Joël Ebbers and Martin Roesink. Their hybrid Renault C460 finished second, just four seconds behind prologue winner Martin Macik, who continues his dominant streak. Things didn’t go as smoothly for Gert Huzink. His team lost their way on the winding route around Fez and accidentally triggered a waypoint that was passed out of sequence.
“We’ll probably have to start at the back because we hit a waypoint while off course on the winding track. There’s a penalty for that,” Huzink explained. “For safety reasons, we might be moved up to just behind the last truck. It won’t affect the overall time classification, since the prologue doesn’t count for that.”
Although the incident doesn’t impact his overall time, it likely means Huzink will have to start further back in the convoy on Monday. That’s a tough position for the long and fast first stage towards Erfoud, where dust and the tracks left by earlier vehicles can play a decisive role.
Highlights and surprises
Young South African Jayden Els (BBR Motorsport) caused a stir by setting the fastest time in the Challenger class. Dutch driver Puck Klaassen, representing G Rally, followed closely with an impressive third place—just seven seconds off the lead. In the SSV category, Joao Dias took the prologue win ahead of compatriot Alexandre Pinto and Jeremías González Ferioli (Can-Am Factory Team).
The top four in the prologue for the bike category, Brabec, Schareina, Sanders, and Benavides, also happen to be the current top four in the world championship standings. That sets the stage for a thrilling five days ahead, starting with a brutal first stage tomorrow: 779 kilometers from Fez to Erfoud, including 298 kilometers of timed special. According to race director Marc Coma, it’s a “Dakar-worthy” day featuring long liaisons and a fast yet treacherous special across the Rekkam Plateau.
RallyTracks.nl will be tracking every development at the 2025 Rallye du Maroc. Expect daily updates, Dutch results, interviews, and rankings. Let the adventure begin!
