Pictures by Kin Marcin / Red Bull Content Pool
Text by Mike Charopka

High Stakes and Harsh Terrain—Dakar 2025 Pushes Drivers, Machines, and Strategies to Their Limits

Ford vs. Dacia

Stage 3 proved disastrous for Dacia. Sébastien Loeb rolled his car and was forced to withdraw upon arrival at the bivouac. With a damaged safety cage, race officials ruled against allowing him to continue—a major blow for the Frenchman.

Now, Nasser Al-Attiyah from Dacia Sandriders remains their sole contender. He finished sixth in today’s stage and currently sits second overall with a time of 19h10m10s—just 7 minutes and 17 seconds behind race leader Saood Variawa of Toyota Gazoo Racing.

Mattias Ekström is third overall, trailing Variawa by 9m34s. His teammate, Mitchell Guthrie, holds 8th place, with a 23m40s gap to the leader.

New car designs are taking a beating, but Ford remains in a better position. Their veteran, Nani Roma, rejoined the race in Stage 3 with 20 hours of penalties and now serves as a fast technical assistance vehicle. Similarly, Cristina Gutiérrez will support Al-Attiyah as a backup driver.

Bikes

Skyler Howes climbed to second overall in the bike category, trailing leader Daniel Sanders by just 6m51s. Meanwhile, Ricky Brabec is 4th, 9m15s behind Sanders. Together, the Americans are battling fiercely for dominance.

Jacob Argubright is 18th overall, 1h26m52s behind the leader, while Mason Klein has dropped to 62nd with a staggering 7h25m07s deficit.

Racing for Experience

Despite being out of contention for the overall win, Sara Price restarted in Stage 3. Although heavy penalties from her previous withdrawal ended her title hopes, she’s now focused on winning individual stages and gaining valuable experience for future Dakar rallies.

Brock Heger impressed with a third-place stage finish and now sits second overall, trailing his teammate Xavier de Soultrait by 5m39s.

Hunter Miller finished 11th and holds 14th place overall, 6h25m52s behind the SSV leader.

Corbin Leaverton is 3rd overall in the Challenger category, 22m09s off the lead. Zachary Lumsden ranks 20th, trailing the leader by 7h45m06s.

Conclusion

Stage 3 was a critical setup for the grueling Marathon stage, where racers will face limited mechanical support. With mechanical reliability and endurance under the spotlight, the Dakar Rally is shaping up as one of the most brutal tests in recent memory. Buckle up—this ride is far from over!

CHECK THE RESULTS ON THE OFFICIAL DAKAR DAKAR RALLY WEBSITE: https://www.dakar.live.worldrallyraidchampionship.com/en/car/2/standings

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