Guillaume de Mévius has won the first stage of Dakar Rally 2026. The Belgian was fastest in his MINI JCW Rally over the 305-kilometre special around Yanbu, beating Nasser Al-Attiyah by 40 seconds. Martin Prokop completed the podium at 1:27, ahead of Marek Goczał and Mattias Ekström who finished fourth and fifth at 1:38.
It’s a special victory for De Mévius and navigator Mathieu Baumel, who lost his right leg in a traffic accident less than a year ago. The duo experienced a tense moment during the stage when their tracking beacon failed, causing them to temporarily disappear from the timing screens. “De Mévius surfaced again at the finish,” the organisation reported about the surprise winner.
The 524-kilometre loop from Yanbu was characterised by a treacherous start with narrow passages and sharp rocks that significantly increased the risk of punctures. Only later on the route did drivers get some relief in the sandy sections and small dunes towards the finish.
Ekström dominates but misses out
Mattias Ekström seemed on course for victory for a long time. The Swede took the lead at kilometre 70 and held it until kilometre 260, at one point with more than a minute’s advantage. But in the final phase he lost time and also received a ten-second time penalty, dropping him from fourth to a shared fifth place, level with Goczał.
Behind him, a fierce battle raged for the podium. At kilometre 150, Prokop, Nani Roma, Al-Attiyah and Carlos Sainz were within twenty seconds of each other. The podium ultimately highlighted three different manufacturers: a MINI, a Dacia and a Ford, with privateer Prokop as a surprise.
Ford with five cars in top twelve
Ford demonstrated its strength with five Raptors in the top twelve. Carlos Sainz finished sixth (+1:54), Nani Roma eighth (+2:37), Mitch Guthrie ninth (+2:50) and Denis Krotov twelfth (+3:47). At kilometre 180, Ford even held the first four positions.
Dacia and Toyota in pursuit
Dacia placed three cars in the top fifteen. Alongside Al-Attiyah (2nd), Sébastien Loeb finished tenth (+3:01), Lucas Moraes eleventh (+3:34) and Cristina Gutiérrez fifteenth (+5:00). Loeb had a turbulent run: after a strong start where he was still second at kilometre 70, he dropped back to P14, but fought his way back to the top ten in the final phase.
Toyota placed Guy Botterill seventh (+2:03), while Goczał impressed with fourth place (+1:38) in his first Dakar in the Ultimate category. Saood Variawa finished thirteenth (+4:15) and João Ferreira fourteenth (+4:16).
Time penalties shake up classification
Several drivers received time penalties. Seth Quintero lost two minutes and dropped to eighteenth place (+7:18), while defending champion Yazeed Al Rajhi received a hefty penalty of sixteen minutes. Combined with his difficult run, he finished 29th at almost 29 minutes.
Henk Lategan had to start first due to his puncture in the prologue and thus open the route. Despite this handicap, the South African limited the damage to almost seven minutes and finished seventeenth.
Van Kasteren limits time loss as quasi-opener
Janus van Kasteren experienced a tough opening stage in his first Ultimate race. The Dutchman had to start fourth and encountered two punctures after just 80 kilometres. “Then we still had 100 kilometres to the pit stop, so we had to drive on eggshells,” Van Kasteren explained. A problem with the front differential also played up, and ten kilometres before the finish the third tyre went. He finished at 43:25.
Dutch crews finding their rhythm
For the Dutch crews, the opening stage was mostly about survival and damage control. Dave Klaassen delivered the best Dutch result with a 48th place, finishing just over 41 minutes behind the winning time. Janus van Kasteren followed closely in 49th, trailing by 43 minutes. Maik Willems came in 51st after a steady stage, more than 50 minutes off the lead. Roger Grouwels brought his Century across the line in 54th, while Tim Coronel wrapped up the stage in 56th. A steering rod issue cost the duo valuable minutes, but thanks to a quick roadside repair, they managed to limit the damage.
The problems for Coronel started early in the stage. “The steering wheel kept getting more tilted,” Tom explained. Upon inspection, it turned out the ball joint in the steering rack was slowly unscrewing. On top of that, Tom also had to change a flat tire. “Had the pleasure of changing a tire all by myself, while Tim just sat there,” Tom laughed. Despite the setbacks, both Tim and Tom were satisfied. “Honestly, it was a good day, and the result reflects that,” said Tim. “We limited the damage and will be back at the start line fresh tomorrow.” Tom agreed: “Not a problem-free stage, but we kept pushing. Everything else went well, very happy overall. The rally has officially started.”
Things didn’t go according to plan for Michiel Becx. He lost a significant amount of time between KM70 and KM108. The Dakar is far from over, but with more than two hours lost, Becx is out of contention for a top overall result. He will now likely focus on stage performances and supporting his Shiver teammates. All in all, a tough first stage for the Dutch competitors, where staying in one piece and holding position proved more important than outright speed.
Results stage 1
1. Guillaume de Mévius 03:07:49
2. Nasser Al-Attiyah +00:00:40
3. Martin Prokop +00:01:27
50. Dave Klaassen +00:41:09
51. Janus van Kasteren +00:43:25
53. Maik Willems +00:50:41
55. Roger Grouwels +00:52:16
57. Tim Coronel +00:53:30
72. Michiel Becx +03:15:53
