RIYADH, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- The 2026 Dakar Rally concluded on Saturday with a series of dramatic finishes and historic milestones, as Luciano Benavides won the bike category after edging out Ricky Brabec by just two seconds, the narrowest winning margin in Dakar history.
Benavides took advantage of a late navigation error by the American about seven kilometers from the finish. The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing camp erupted in celebration as the Argentine claimed his career first Dakar title, while Monster Energy Honda rider Brabec was denied a hat-trick of victories. Spain's Tosha Schareina completed the podium.
In the car category, Nasser Al-Attiyah added a new chapter to his legend by winning the race for the sixth time. The Qatari star is now sandwiched between Ari Vatanen, with four car victories, and Stephane Peterhansel, who has eight. Al-Attiyah also delivered Dacia's first Dakar win, beating the Ford Raptors of Nani Roma and Mattias Ekstrom, while Sebastien Loeb finished just outside the podium for the first time in his Dakar career.
Kevin Benavides marked his brother's triumph with a victory of his own in the Challenger class, but the overall winner was Spaniard Pau Navarro, who romped home with 23 minutes to spare. In SSV, American Brock Heger and his Polaris defended his title by an hour over Kyle Chaney and his Can-Am.
In the truck division, Lithuania's Vaidotas Zala claimed the title on his second attempt after defeating Ales Loprais and Mitch van den Brink.
A total of 247 vehicles out of 317 that had started the race crossed the finish line in Yanbu, with 204 competitors receiving finisher's medals on the podium at the conclusion of the Dakar Rally.
The finishers included 90 motorbikes, comprising nine in the RallyGP category and 79 in Rally2, as well as 133 cars, with 61 competing in Ultimate, 33 in Challenger, 32 in SSV and seven in the Stock category. In addition, 24 trucks completed the event.
Meanwhile, 91 vehicles appeared in the final classification of the Dakar Classic regularity rally, which was won by Lithuanian driver Karolis Raisys in his second participation. ■
