Mattias Ekström has won the seventh stage of Dakar Rally 2026, but the story of the day comes from Henk Lategan. The South African was on course for victory and the overall lead, but lost 8:35 at the finish to Ekström. Nasser Al-Attiyah retains the lead, Ekström climbs to second place, Nani Roma to third and Lategan drops to fourth position.
It was a dramatic conclusion on the 459-kilometre special to Wadi ad-Dawasir. Lategan dominated all day and led at kilometre 417 by 1:46 over Ekström. In the virtual classification he had overtaken Al-Attiyah and stood over two minutes clear. But in the final 42 kilometres it all went wrong.
“Drama in the desert: Lategan lets the stage win and overall lead slip,” the organisation reported. “Believe it or not, Henk Lategan has lost it all on the home straight. The South African, who was on track to take the stage win and the overall lead, crossed the finish line 8:35 behind the winner, Mattias Ekström.”
Ekström first with two victories
Ekström becomes the first driver to win two stages in this edition, after his earlier victory in the prologue. The Swede crossed the finish with a 4:27 advantage over João Ferreira. Mitch Guthrie completed the podium at 4:55, just ahead of Toby Price who missed his first Ultimate podium by just six seconds. Lucas Moraes finished fifth at 5:17.
“Nothing lasts forever, and Mattias Ekström broke the ‘jinx’ that had stopped any driver from claiming more than one stage win in the 48th Dakar,” the organisation reported.
Al-Attiyah retains lead, Roma on podium
Nasser Al-Attiyah finished eleventh in the stage at 7:24, but retains the lead in the classification. “Nasser Al-Attiyah was toppled from the virtual lead at km 375, but the South African’s troubles at the end of the stage returned the top spot to the Qatari,” the organisation stated.
Ekström climbs to second place at 4:47 (including 0:30 penalty). Nani Roma is third at 7:15 (including 1:10 penalty), his best result since 2019. Lategan drops from first to fourth place at 7:21. Carlos Sainz is fifth at 10:26 (including 1:10 penalty). Sébastien Loeb is sixth at 15:39.
The top five consists of three Fords, one Dacia and one Toyota. It’s the tightest battle in twenty years: just 26:46 separates the top ten after the first week, making Dakar 2026 one of the most open editions ever.
Lategan’s lead gradually shrank
Lategan opened the stage and gradually lost ground on his competitors. At kilometre 107 he still had a 3:03 advantage over Al-Attiyah in the virtual standings. At kilometre 178 that had shrunk to 1:01. At kilometre 233 he had just 12 seconds left. “Henk Lategan is doubling down 233 km into the special, with Nasser Al-Attiyah now 5:58 adrift. We are witnessing a seismic change in the overall,” the organisation reported.
At kilometre 295, Lategan had virtually taken the lead with a 36-second advantage. At kilometre 339 that grew to over two minutes. “There it is: after flying through the previous time checks, Henk Lategan has stormed into the virtual lead of the Dakar at km 375. The South African has erased his entire deficit to Nasser Al-Attiyah and now leads the Dacia driver by a shade over 2 minutes,” the organisation stated.
Ekström hunted Lategan down
Mattias Ekström kept chasing Lategan. At kilometre 233 he was still 1:35 behind, at kilometre 295 that was 54 seconds and at kilometre 339 just 42 seconds. “Mattias Ekström is going after Henk Lategan. At km 295, the Swede is keeping the pace pinned and closing to just 27 seconds off the provisional leader,” the organisation noted.
At kilometre 375, Lategan still led by 1:29 over Ekström. “Lategan pads his lead,” the organisation reported then. But the final section proved fatal. At kilometre 417, Lategan still had a 1:46 advantage. What happened after that remains unclear, but at the finish Ekström was 8:35 faster.
Roma reinstated as stage 5 winner
Before the start it was announced that Nani Roma’s time penalty in stage 5 has been scrapped following an investigation by the FIA Stewards. The Spaniard has been reinstated as the winner of that stage and now stands at an impressive total of 27 Dakar victories: 13 on a motorbike and 14 in a car. This means that Mitch Guthrie was not the winner of stage 5, but Roma was.
Ford and Toyota strong
Ford placed five Raptors in the top ten of the stage: Ekström (1st), Guthrie (3rd), Sainz (9th) and Roma (10th). Toyota also had strong representation with Ferreira (2nd), Price (4th) and Quintero (7th).
The battle for the title is wide open after Lategan’s drama, with the top five within 10:26 and the top ten within 26:46 – the tightest battle in two decades.
Dutch riders face problems today
The seventh stage had a lot of rocks on the road, and Janus van Kasteren and Michiel Becx both ran into trouble because of them. Both had to stop for a long time to repair the damage to their Century CR7s. Van Kasteren crossed the finish line 4:15:29 behind. Becx seems to be dropping out today; after riding for a while, he came to a halt again.
The fastest Dutchman was once again Tim Coronel. Together with his twin brother, he finished 42nd at 44:09. Roger Grouwels took 46th place at 48:01. Maik Willems finished 59th at 1:28:06 and Dave Klaassen took 60th place at 1:34:45.
