Welcome to our daily Dakar Rally 2025 coverage, where the world’s most daring drivers and riders take on Saudi Arabia’s breathtaking and unforgiving landscapes. From shifting sands to rocky trails, witness unparalleled endurance, strategy, and determination as competitors tackle each stage. Here is all you need to know:

• Click HERE for more Dakar news from Dakar.com.
• Free Editorial Content from the race HERE
• Discover all the key players of the 2025 Dakar Rally, that you need to know HERE
• Follow Carlos Sainz Snr, Mitch Guthrie, Nani Roma and Mathias Ekström on their journey to the world's toughest off-road race, the Dakar Rally with the film Journey to Dakar HERE
• Watch Australian dirt legend Toby Price's challenging journey to four wheels with his sights set on the world's hardest rally, Dakar 2025, in Price to Dakar HERE

DAY 7: Stage 5 - January 9, 2025

Route: AlUla > Ha'il - Liaison 64km and Special 428km

- American Seth Quintero banked his second 2025 stage win on Thursday to become the youngest ever driver with multiple stage wins in the Ultimate class, after edging out five-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah. The Qatari moved up to fourth overall behind South African leader Henk Lategan, despite a 10-minute time penalty for leaving behind a flat tyre. Twenty-two-year-old Quintero, who now occupies ninth overall heading into the Ha'il rest day, said: "Yesterday we got three flats and lost over an hour, so today I thought let's just go for it. All in all, it was a really rough Marathon Stage for us but day two ended up a lot better than day one."

- Sweden's Mattias Ekström stayed firm in third overall after Stage 5 with Brazilian Lucas Moraes and American Mitch Guthrie Jr. also in the top 10 as Ultimate debutants Toby Price and co-driver Sam Sunderland rebounded from their Stage 4 punctures to finish 11th on the day. Australian Price, 37, admitted: "Yesterday killed us, but it is what it is. It's disappointing to let everyone down, who made this Dakar possible for us. From here on out, the aim is get good stage results and go from there."

- Argentine Luciano Benavides also powered to a stage win - his first of the 47th edition - to cut the deficit to overall leader Daniel Sanders down to 24 minutes and 15 seconds with Friday's rest day to recuperate ahead of the race's second half. The 29-year-old, who is seventh overall, said: "I got past a lot of guys today and had a good rhythm throughout the day. What's difficult is identifying the stages that you can really push on. I hope my strategy works better for me in the second week."

- Elsewhere in the bike category, it's been an encouraging first Dakar week for 19-year-old rookie and Sanders' Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Edgar Canet. The Spanish teenager leads the Rally2 class following three stage wins in his category and has cemented a position in the top 10 overall. He revealed: "It was a long stage with a mix of sandy piste and some rocks. Some of the navigation points were difficult. We're halfway and I'm leading Rally2, so I'm happy with how things are going."

- The Challenger class saw Portuguese driver Gonçalo Guerreiro cut leader Nicolas Cavigliasso's overall advantage to 28m34s at the 2025 race's midway point, however his Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team teammate Corbin Leaverton lost over three hours on the perilous path between AlUla and Hail. Guerreiro, 24, said: "It's been such a difficult two days of Marathon Stage, I'm really happy it's done. We pushed when we could. Now, we'll use the Rest Day to change some things on our setup."

- With Francisco "Chaleco" López securing his second SSV stage win in three days, the remaining Dakar convoy gets a well-earned rest in Ha'il - once the capital of the Arabian Desert - tonight and tomorrow before they resume racing during Saturday's Stage 6 from Ha'il to Al Duwadimi.

2025 Dakar Rally selected overall standings after Stage 5

Ultimate

1. Henk Lategan (ZAF) 28:10.11

3. Mattias Ekström (SWE) +20.54

4. Nasser Al-Attiyah (QAT) +35.00

5. Lucas Moraes (BRA) +41.55

6. Mitch Guthrie Jr. (USA) +42.44

9. Seth Quintero (USA) +1:30.10

15. Rokas Baciuška (LTU) +3:28.19

16. Giniel de Villiers (ZAF) +3:32.17

18. Guillaume De Mévius (BEL) +3:50.19

26. Toby Price (AUS) +6:06.51

45. Cristina Gutiérrez (ESP) +37:34.39

49. Nani Roma (ESP) +65:19.34

Challenger

1. Nicolas Cavigliasso (ARG) 30:38.42

2. Gonçalo Guerreiro (POR) +28.34

5. Dania Akeel (SAU) +1:37.59

6. Pau Navarro (ESP) +2:02.16

SSV

1. Brock Heger (USA) 31:48.54

4. Francisco López (CHL) +2:01.59

Bike

1. Daniel Sanders (AUS) 30:20.15

7. Luciano Benavides (ARG) +24.15

10. Edgar Canet (ESP) +1:01.44

26. Kevin Benavides (ARG) +3:14.56

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DAY 6: Stage 4 - January 8, 2025

Route: Al Henakiyah > AlUla - Liaison 173km and Special 415km

- After trouble with his electronic tablet during Tuesday's Stage 3, bike racer Daniel Sanders was given back 4m54s by race organisers before setting off on Stage 4. He continued his brilliant 2025 Dakar Rally in the first part of this year's Marathon Stage as the Australian navigated the 415-kilometre volcanic rock garden spreading from Al Henakiyah to AlUla safely on Wednesday as others in the convoy found it tough going on their tyres. The 30-year-old, who holds a 13-minute 26-second lead over his nearest rival Spaniard Tosha Schareina, said: "I know this area and it can be tricky, so you've just got to focus. It looks like I’m opening the stage tomorrow, so the pressure is on to not lose too much time."

- With younger brother Luciano in eighth overall, two-time bike winner Kevin Benavides has struggled to reach those heights again at the 47th edition as - under Marathon Stage rules - the riders were given just 90 minutes to work on their bikes after completing today's route. The Argentine revealed: "The first part of this Marathon Stage was incredibly long, more than five hours of racing. There were lines everywhere, so I was really focused on the navigation and doing my own work."

- The Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team rookies swapped positions in the Challenger class as American Corbin Leaverton leapfrogged Portuguese team-mate Gonçalo Guerreiro into second spot overall. Guerreiro, 24, admitted: "There were so many stones. I've never seen something like this. We managed as best we could and still got one flat tyre. We have more than 400 kilometres and our car is in perfect condition."

- It was a frustrating day in the Ultimate class as Frenchman Sébastien Loeb did not even start due to a damaged roll cage - which means he goes another year without an elusive Dakar title - while car debutant Australian Toby Price was undone after a string of strong results when he had to wait more than two hours for his service truck to arrive.

- Swede Mattias Ekström got through unscathed to lie 21m40s off Ultimate leader Henk Lategan with Brazilian Lucas Moraes up to fifth overall, and American Mitch Guthrie Jr. up to sixth as five-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah dropped down to seventh - 35m 53s back from Lategan overall. The Qatari, 54, commented: "We stopped twice today. Once for a puncture and the second time for a broken rear arm. We waited for Cristina (Dacia teammate Gutiérrez) and then we fixed it. The car is OK for tomorrow."

- In the SSV class, Chilean Francisco "Chaleco" López finished second on the day for fourth overall. The three-time Dakar winner, 49, said: "All the rocks and also the navigation made this a complicated stage. Aside from the tough terrain, the landscape in AlUla is always very beautiful."

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DAY 5: Stage 3 - January 7, 2025

Route: Bisha > Al Henakiyah - Liaison 466km and Special 327km

- Tuesday's Stage 3 between Bisha and Al Henakiyah produced another dramatic day of action as Swede Mattias Ekström moved up into the top three overall to lead the charge for Ford M-Sport following the retirement of reigning champion Carlos Sainz. He now lies nine minutes and 34 seconds behind Ultimate leader Henk Lategan with Nasser Al-Attiyah in second place. Forty-six-year-old Ekström, who can still count on team-mates Mitch Guthrie Jr. and Nani Roma for support, said: "For our part, we did our best to drive smart today. We're happy with where we are."

- Sadly for Frenchman Sébastien Loeb, his quest for a first Dakar Rally title took a hit when he lost over an hour after his Dacia Sandrider turned sideways and rolled at high-speed. Despite the car sustaining serious damage, he was able to continue after team-mate Cristina Gutiérrez handed over spare parts. The 50-year-old explained: "I hit a rut that turned us sideways and the car rolled. There wasn't so much damage, but after 50 kilometres we broke a steering rod. Cristina stopped to give us one, but after that the front engine fan stopped working."

- Seth Quintero and Belgian Guillaume De Mévius both finished in the top four with the American not far off a second 2025 stage win. The 22-year-old said: "We got stuck in the dust for quite a long time in the beginning. Once we got past a few guys, we were able to set sail. Unfortunately, we got a slow puncture just before the finish and that cost us the stage win."

- Australian Daniel Sanders saw his overall bike lead eaten into by his rivals with Argentine Luciano Benavides making up five minutes on the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider, who had to overcome the fact his electronic roadbook stopped working. Sanders, 30, revealed: "My tablet stopped working, so I couldn't navigate. I was lost out there and I picked the wrong person to follow. It's unfortunate." Spaniard Edgar Canet leads the Rally2 category after three stages for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing.

- The Challenger standings saw teammates Gonçalo Guerreiro and Corbin Leaverton both lose precious ground to leader Nicolas Cavigliasso, however home racer Dania Akeel produced a superb performance to finish just 26 seconds off the Argentine on the day. Akeel, a Jeddah native and former bike racer, said: "It was a rocky, twisty stage with nice navigation to figure out. It was hard to gain time because it was so fast."

- Elsewhere, Dakar legend Francisco "Chaleco" López dusted himself off quickly from his Stage 2 disappointment to earn his first SSV stage win.

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DAY 4: Stage 2 (48-hour Chrono) - January 6, 2025

Route: Bisha > Bisha - Liaison 45km and Special 947km

- Monday saw the end of the 48-hour Chrono Stage with some of the top contenders thriving over the strength-sapping two days, while others fell by the wayside. The 1,000km challenge over mixed terrain pushed the field to the limit, but one wise head in five-time champion Nasser Al-Attiyah put his pedal to the metal to move confidently up the standings.

- The Qatari put his Dacia Sandrider into third overall - 11 minutes and 14 seconds behind Ultimate class leader Henk Lategan - with his teammate Sébastien Loeb battling back from an overheating issue to end strongly and finish less than 20 minutes behind the South African. Al-Attiyah, 54, said: "We had a puncture for the last 50km and also an issue with the power-steering. It was tough to get through this stage with all the dust."

- With Spaniards Cristina Gutiérrez, Carlos Sainz and Nani Roma suffering setbacks, Ultimate rookies Toby Price and Sam Sunderland moved up to fourth after a near faultless performance. Australian Price, 37, said: "At one point we got past Nasser and we were opening the way, but then he just blew back by us. Sammy did a great job. I gave his head a good rattle."

- Back on two wheels, Australian Daniel Sanders increased his bike advantage to 12 minutes 36 seconds over American Skyler Howes with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Luciano Benavides sixth after hanging tough throughout. Sanders, 30, said: "When you're opening, there's no line so you don't know if it's going to be a soft or hard dune. Everyone bunched up because of the dust, so we were fighting to get the opening bonus. I don't feel tired at all. I'm ready for what's still to come."

- In the Challenger class, Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team driver Corbin Leaverton finished third to lie third overall however Portuguese teammate Gonçalo Guerreiro is just six minutes and 20 seconds off Argentine leader Nicolas Cavigliasso. Guerreiro, 24, said: "We had a tense moment in the dunes yesterday, but we were able to fix the car. We’re still in the game." Sadly for Chilean Francisco "Chaleco" López, his SSV tilt suffered a blow as he lost three hours on the leader.

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DAY 3: Stage 2 (48-hour Chrono) – January 5, 2025

Route: Bisha > Bisha – Liaison 45km | Special 947km

- There’s no easing into the 2025 Dakar Rally, as organisers have thrown some of the biggest challenges at competitors immediately. Stage 2 is the notorious 48-hour Chrono and tonight the convoy sleeps out in the desert, with a massive 1,000km to cover in two days.

- In the Ultimate class, five-time Dakar champion Nasser Al-Attiyah made his move for the front in the new Dacia Sandrider and spent the day fighting for the lead. The Qatari and his Saudi Arabian rival Yazeed Al Rajhi pushed each other for over 600km before the 5pm racing cut-off. At sunset, it was Al Rajhi who held a lead of just over a minute on Al-Attiyah.

- While one champion is in contention for the win, the news wasn’t good for defending Dakar winner Carlos Sainz, who flipped his Ford Raptor T1+. Team-mate Mitch Guthrie Jr. was soon on the scene to help Sainz get going, but the damage sustained prevented the Spaniard from clawing back lost time and he ended the day close to one hour adrift of the leaders.

- Sébastien Loeb also suffered bad luck, as the nine-time WRC winner came to a halt 409km into the stage and lost precious time. He was assisted by the third Dacia Sandrider of Cristina Gutiérrez and finished the day down in 17th place.

- Among the surprises on the first half of the 48-hour Chrono was the performance of Ultimate class rookie Toby Price The two-time Bike champ got his teeth into the task with fellow Bike winning co-driver Sam Sunderland and the duo set up camp just 16m 20s off the stage leaders.

- There was no 48-hour Chrono for Laia Sanz, following her Stage 1 crash. Although she brought her car back to the bivouac, it was too badly damaged to continue in her quest to finish a 15th consecutive Dakar.

- The Bike class has seen a dream start for Australian Daniel Sanders. After wins on the Prologue and Stage 1, Sanders was fastest again on the first part of the 48-hour Chrono. After close to eight hours in the saddle, Sanders put down the fastest time to maintain the overall lead of the bike race. Sanders is joined in the provisional top 10 by Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team-mate Luciano Benavides and 19-year-old rookie Edgar Canet, who has massively impressed so far.

- In the Challenger class it was a decisive day for a pair of Taurus T3 Max drivers, as both Pau Navarro and Dania Akeel launched attacks. Navarro rose to fifth on his Challenger class debut while Akeel provisionally took sixth. Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team rookies Gonçalo Guerreiro and Corbin Leaverton stood up to everything in their first 48-hour Chrono experiences and came out in second and fourth respectively in the overall Challenger contest.

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DAY 2: Stage 1 - January 4, 2025

Route: Bisha > Bisha – Liaison 86km | Special 413km

- The 2025 Dakar Rally properly kicked-off with a massive 500km to complete on Stage 1. It was in at the deep end for the racers.

- In the Ultimate class, Brazilian Lucas Moraes led the 413km special stage for the majority of the day, but decided to hit the brakes before the finish line to ensure a favourable starting position for tomorrow’s 48-hour Chrono Stage.

- While Moraes finished the stage with the eighth fastest time, it was his Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Seth Quintero who took the win. Quintero's stage win puts the 22-year-old in the outright lead of the Ultimate class. “It’s always good to get the first one done. We got past quite a few cars, then we saw Laia Sanz had a big crash, so we stopped there and did what we could to help,” said the American.

- Joining Quintero and Moraes in the top 10 on Stage 1 were the Dacia Sandrider of Cristina Gutiérrez, the Ford Raptor T1+ of defending champion Carlos Sainz and the Toyota Hilux driven by former bikes champion Toby Price.

- “The stage was quite tough. In many places it was difficult to see the line. Many places were also very narrow and the car got quite damaged,” reported 62-year-old Sainz after the stage.

- As night fell, it was unclear if Laia Sanz would be able to finish the stage. The finisher of 14 consecutive editions of the Dakar was involved in a crash 330km into the stage and had to wait for assistance to try and get her Century CR6 moving again.

- In the Bike class, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Daniel Sanders made it two wins from two. The Australian followed up Prologue victory with a clear win on the tough and technical Stage 1. He now leads closest rival Ricky Brabec by 2m 22s heading into the 48-hour Chrono.

- “There was a lot of dust, so it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to start at the back. In the end, everyone caught up with each other, so you had to stand your ground and stay strong,” said the 30-year-old.

- Fellow Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider Luciano Benavides sits just outside the overall top five after a strong ride, while his older brother Kevin is also still in the mix, along with 19-year-old rookie Edger Canet.

- Unfortunately, this year’s Dakar Rally has ended early for India's Hairth Noah, who suffered a fractured wrist during yesterday’s Prologue.

- There was a second consecutive runner-up finish for Gonçalo Guerreiro of the Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team in the Challenger class. The Portuguese driver followed up his impressive Prologue drive with another good display in his Taurus T3 Max and is just four seconds behind early leader Nicolas Cavigliasso. “That’s the first stage of the Dakar done. The navigation was tricky but my co-driver Cadu did a very good job and the car is perfect,"

- Guerreiro is joined in the Top 5 of the Challenger class by fellow Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team driver Corbin Leaverton who finished the stage in fifth.

- In the SSV race, Dakar veteran Francisco ‘Chaleco’ López sits second overall. The Chilean driver is less than eight minutes behind SSV leader Xavier De Soultrait with 11 stages remaining and looking strong.

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DAY 1: Prologue – January 3, 2025

Route: Bisha > Bisha – Liaison 50km | Special 29km

- The 2025 Dakar Rally roared into life at Friday's high-speed Prologue Stage with 29 kilometres against the clock around the Start Camp in Bisha seeing the Red Bull Desert Wings racers putting themselves in pole position for a favourable starting position on Saturday's Stage One.

- The Ultimate Class proved to be fruitful for the V8-powered Ford Raptor T1+ of Mattias Ekström with the Swede finishing just one second off the Toyota Hilux of Prologue winner Henk Lategan. The 46-year-old, who is now 19 seconds ahead of five-time Dakar Rally champion Nasser Al-Attiyah, said: "I grew up with V8s in the DTM, so I have a lot of experience with these engines. I think the sound of a V8 beats everything."

- Ultimate category debutant Rokas Baciuška can also be pleased with his day's work on the back of claiming World Rally-Raid Championship titles in both the SSV and Challenger categories. The 25-year-old from Lithuania finished fourth and revealed: "It's great to finally get this Dakar started. Today was just 29km, but tomorrow looks like a really tough stage."

- Over in the Challenger class, the newest recruits of the Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team started brilliantly with rookie Corbin Leaverton excelling behind the wheel of his Taurus T3 Max to lead fellow Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team driver Gonçalo Guerreiro by four seconds. The 23-year-old American admitted: "I'm a little bit surprised by the result, but pleasantly surprised. It's just one very small task in the scheme of a huge 12-stage race, but it's good to know that we have the pace."

- In a stacked bike field for the 47th edition, Australian Daniel Sanders put down his marker early by becoming the only rider to cover the day's 29km in less than 17 minutes on his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing bike. With Spanish teammate Edgar Canet in third, the 30-year-old said: "It was a pretty smooth run today. Hopefully it's good enough to give me a good position for tomorrow. This is just the beginning of a long race."

- The SSV class sees the return of Dakar favourite Francisco 'Chaleco' López, who banked fifth place on Friday in the category he won in 2019 while the rally was still hosted in his native South America. The Chilean is 39 seconds behind American leader Brock Heger heading into Stage One.

Learn More About the 2025 Dakar Rally Event HERE.