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Issue #9:January 12, 2026
On January 11, the 2026 Dakar Rally entered its second half with a 459 km SS (competition section) set between Riyadh and Wadi ad‑Dawasir in Saudi Arabia. Taking on the stage with refreshed vehicles after the previous day’s rest, car #501 with Akira Miura and Jean‑Michel Polato finished 82nd overall in the 4‑wheel vehicle rankings and 4th in the Stock class, 23 minutes 27 seconds behind the class‑leading Land Rover Defender #500. Car #503 with Ronald Basso and Julien Menard ran into more trouble with the steering system but managed to make it to the finish just 2 minutes 46 seconds behind #501, coming in 88th place overall and 5th in class.
As a result, car #503 maintains its cumulative ranking of 75th overall and 3rd in the Stock class. Car #501 is now 145th overall and 5th in class. Car #503 trails the 2nd‑place class contender, Land Rover Defender #500, by 1 hour 33 minutes 26 seconds, while the 4th‑place Land Rover Defender #504 with Sara Price and Sean Berriman is following 18 minutes 19 seconds behind.
This day marked another long stage south of Riyadh, covering a total of 877 km. Competitors first traveled south‑southwest from the capital along a 278 km liaison (transfer section) to start the SS (competition section). The SS mainly featured gravel tracks carved with parallel pistes, and sand dunes spanning approximately 40 km along the way. While there were twisty sections weaving through a grove of trees, and rocky crossings at the end, it was a high-speed stage overall.
For car #503, steering‑system trouble persisted throughout the SS, intermittently resulting in heavy steering operation. This even led to a moment where the vehicle’s side came into contact with a standing tree, but the crew remained focused, reaching the finish safely while it was still daylight. Meanwhile, car #501 encountered no issues, smoothly navigating the dune areas with large climbs and descents. They completed the SS steadily without punctures.
The crews then continued another 140 km south via liaison, arriving at the Wadi ad‑Dawasir bivouac, which had been set up near the airport.
Stage 8 on January 12 will be a loop course starting from the same location, with 483 km of competition planned.
(Provisional rankings as of 4:00 AM Japan time)
Miura (Driver): Most of today’s SS was high‑speed, and even the dune sections could be crossed without dropping tire pressure while keeping a good pace. The final day of the first half wasn’t really what we expected, and we still haven’t seen any truly difficult routes yet this year. I’m hoping things get tougher soon, because that’s where the Land Cruiser truly shines...
Basso (Driver): From the beginning of the SS, we had some trouble with the steering system. The steering was heavy and it was tough, but the overall high‑speed nature of the stage helped us get through. Tomorrow’s SS is long and includes dunes, and the Marathon Stage begins the day after. I’m expecting the course to finally become more challenging.