The second stage of the Desafío Ruta 40 YPF, from San Juan to San Rafael over a special that also served as stage 12 at the 2010 Dakar Rally, delivered another spectacular show. Across just 128 competitive kilometres against the clock beneath the Andes, through sand, dust and high speeds over salt flats, the standings took further shape. Sanders tightened his grip on the motorcycle classification, while in the cars Al Attiyah showed his class and Portuguese rider João Ferreira took the overall lead.
The stage was more than 200 kilometres shorter than planned, but the sting was in the navigation and the varied terrain. There was also a 393-kilometre liaison to San Rafael waiting after the special. What unfolded across those 128 competitive kilometres had significant consequences for the standings in both categories.
Sanders unstoppable, even as road opener
Those who thought Daniel Sanders could not repeat his dominance from stage 1 while opening the road were proven wrong. The Australian from Red Bull KTM Factory Racing won again, putting his teammate Luciano Benavides, who started second, more than five minutes behind him. His overall lead over Tosha Schareina grew to 11 minutes.
Schareina finished third in the stage, 5 minutes and 17 seconds behind Sanders, and remains second overall. Ricky Brabec suffered odometer problems early on, losing nearly two and a half minutes in the opening section, but fought back to finish fourth on the stage. He sits third overall, 12 minutes and 35 seconds off the lead. Adrien Van Beveren had a better day than yesterday and finished fifth despite a minor navigational error along the way. Skyler Howes again had trouble with his tablet and lost his way, resulting in a tenth-place stage finish.
Tomorrow Sanders faces the tough task of starting first again, on this edition’s longest special: 409 kilometres.
Al Attiyah strikes back, Ferreira takes the lead
In the cars, the return of Nasser Al Attiyah was the big story. The Qatari from Dacia, who finished eighth yesterday after a puncture that cost him nearly six minutes, won the stage by 21 seconds ahead of Saood Variawa (Toyota Gazoo Racing SA). It was Al Attiyah’s eighth stage win at the Desafío Ruta 40 YPF, achieved with a third different manufacturer: he had previously won stages with Toyota (2023) and Prodrive (2024), now with Dacia. It was also his 52nd W2RC victory overall and the twentieth for the Sandrider.
The overall lead, however, belongs to João Ferreira (Toyota Gazoo Racing SA), who displaced Eryk Goczał from the top spot. The Portuguese driver sits first, followed by Seth Quintero nine seconds back, Variawa at 1 minute 39 seconds and Henk Lategan at 2 minutes 53 seconds. Al Attiyah moves up to fifth, 3 minutes and 6 seconds adrift. Championship leader Sébastien Loeb, already in trouble with two punctures yesterday, is now eighth at 9 minutes and 26 seconds.
Honda makes its move in Rally2
In Rally2, Preston Campbell (Monster Energy Honda HRC) made his mark. The American won the stage and also took the overall lead from his teammate Martim Ventura, who now sits 2 minutes and 17 seconds back. Bruno Crivilin completed an all-Honda podium, 2 minutes and 35 seconds behind. Murun Purevdorj (Xraids Experience) remains untouchable in Rally3 with his third consecutive stage win.
In the quads, Antanas Kanopkinas (CFMoto Thunder Racing) made up for his retirement yesterday due to a battery failure by taking the stage win. Lucas Domínguez holds the overall lead in that category despite the setback. In the Stock class, Rokas Baciuška took the lead from his Defender teammate Stéphane Peterhansel with a stage win. In the Challenger class, Puck Klaassen won the women’s stage. Alexandre Pinto (Old Friends Rally) and Jeremías González Ferioli (Can-Am Factory) remain the leaders in the Challenger and SSV classes respectively.
Stage 3: the longest day
Tomorrow brings the toughest stage of this edition: 575 kilometres in total around San Rafael, with a 409-kilometre special stage. The Race Center opens at 08:00 local time (UTC-3).
