The second day of the 2025 MB Rally Trophy truly lived up to expectations. Competitors were served a full dose of Morocco: breathtaking landscapes paired with treacherous tracks that pushed both man and machine to the limit. The stage was split into two parts: SS2A covering 96 kilometers and SS2B spanning 116 kilometers.
The two sections differed in nature but shared one key trait: they demanded complete concentration. From wide, high-speed tracks to dunes and tricky navigation stretches, the day delivered a true Moroccan challenge. Unforgiving at times, but undeniably stunning.
Van Loon and Rosegaar are in command
Erik van Loon and Wouter Rosegaar continued to dominate. The morning brought some uncertainty. “We’re here mostly to enjoy ourselves, so we’re not taking risks. But even while taking it easy, we made some small mistakes. We had to search a few times and missed a waypoint,” Van Loon explained. That section was later neutralized, as was a tough dune portion later in the morning. Despite this, the pair chose to drive conservatively: “Yesterday and this morning we stayed at eighty percent.” But things shifted in the afternoon. In SS2B, they made their move: “And we gained 10 minutes on second place. We were flawless. Wouter navigated perfectly, and everything behind the wheel went smoothly. It’s a great rally, Mitchel has done a fantastic job.” Their total time of 2:38:10 was, once again, the fastest by far.
Versteijnen fights back, De Rooy loses time
Jasper Versteijnen and Jelle van Limpt bounced back strongly after receiving a heavy penalty on day one. Their times of 1:23:42 in SS2A and 1:21:31 in SS2B secured them second place in the daily standings, just seven minutes behind Van Loon. A clean run with no penalties showed that the duo had both speed and precision on their side.
Gerard de Rooy and Roel Engel kicked off the day with the fastest time in SS2A. But they couldn’t maintain the pace in the second part. Their 1:27:26 in SS2B wasn’t enough to keep them in front. A total stage time of 2:48:21 meant they had to settle for third, still strong, but 10 minutes behind the day’s leaders.
Patric Brinkman and Hein Verschuuren put in another solid performance. Consistent times in both sections earned them fourth place for the day. Kees and Renée Box once again stayed among the frontrunners. With a time of 3:08:59, they finished fifth without errors or penalties.
Martijn van den Broek enjoyed it
For Martijn van den Broek and Jan-Paul van der Poel, it was an intense day. “A fantastic day with very fast tracks and some tricky navigation,” Van den Broek recalled. Between the stages, they enjoyed a unique lunch spot: a crater where scenes from The Mummy and Spectre were filmed. In SS2B, they went full throttle. “Two dune sections where navigation was tough, but we got it right immediately each time. We did blow a tire in the dunes, but only changed it after the stage.” Despite that setback and a 15-minute penalty for a missed waypoint, they still finished sixth overall for the day, holding their place among the top competitors.
Further down the field, the time gaps grew significantly. Marcel van Berlo was hit with a 30-minute penalty, while Kenny de Vries lost 45 minutes. Janus van Kasteren had a tough day, partially retiring from the stage and missing 44 waypoints, resulting in nearly five hours of penalties. Morocco once again proved to be as brutal as it is beautiful for those who slip up.
Stage 3, the first true dunes
Tomorrow, the competitors head back into the sands around Merzouga, facing the first real dunes of this edition. SS3A, at 93 kilometers, opens with sandy sections where boldness is rewarded but mistakes can be costly. SS3B, stretching 130 kilometers, offers flatter yet fast tracks. Once again, the balance between aggression and control will be the deciding factor.
