Motorsports

Dakar Rally 2026: Prologue stage with Carlos Sainz, Edgar Canet, Tosha Chareina, Nani Roma and Laia Sanz | Overview and classification of motorcycles, cars and trucks

Published

1 week ago

January 3, 2026

Kyle

Dakar Rally 2026: Prologue stage with Carlos Sainz, Edgar Canet, Tosha Chareina, Nani Roma and Laia Sanz | Overview and classification of motorcycles, cars and trucks

Dakar Rally ’26. Stage 1 profile

An eventful first stage is expected, with each car suffering a horrific puncture. Taking risks can be expensive. The first part of hard terrain and a “pit stop” area is located in the middle of the route, after which you are faced with fast terrain of sandy beaches with small dunes. Stones can cause complications, so Dakar has created pit stop areas in complex sections where each driver can choose to waste time replacing all wheels and fitting a new spare wheel.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

And here is the live stream of the prologue stage of Dakar 2026. We return this Saturday with stage 1, a 518km and 305km special.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. The Car Chronicle

Ekström won the prologue with his car, Carlos Sainz finished 7th.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage: Statement by Edgar Canet

“The prologue is over. I am very happy with the pace. I am very confident in KTM and I followed 100 percent as indicated in the roadbook without taking any unnecessary risks. We went fast and felt very good… It was the best way to start the 2026 Dakar Rally. We set the best time, but as everyone knows, this is a very long time and it’s only the beginning. Now we are already in the top category and our competitors are tough and experienced. But now I’m happy with what we achieved and we are fast and that’s good.”

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Laia and Isidor Esteve finish

Laia Sanz was defeated at the finish line with her Ekstrom 46 inches, closing in on the provisional top 20. Isidore Esteve lost 1 minute 13 seconds.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Christina ends

Christina Gutierrez had just reached the finish line, finishing 26 inches behind Ekstrom (preliminary 14th place) and with a better time than teammate Seb Loeb, who was provisionally 16th place with 34 inches.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Sainz and Roma finish

On a day that does not count towards this rating, two of Spain’s greatest assets made an intellectual prelude. Carlos Sainz is now in 8th place after giving up 15 inches to Ekström, while Nani Roma is 11th with 18 inches.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage.

Ekström’s time at the front of the prologue remained unchanged, as did the top five with Gasly, Moebius, Al Attiyah at 8 inches and Quintero at 14 inches. Defending champion Al Rajhi was sixth with 14 inches.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Ekström, best time

swede Matthias EkströmFord, who had already recorded the Prologue of the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia in 2023 and 2024, also won the Prologue in Yanbu in 2026, with Ford completing the 22km in 10:48.7, 8 inches ahead of teammate Gasly and eight inches ahead of Mobius and five-time champion Al Attiyah. Carlos Sainz finished 7th with 15 inches. Note that these differences do not count toward the general classification established at the end of Stage 1.

MD Chronicle of Special Envy Fabio Marchi

Edgar Canet’s Star Start: Wins the Prologue, wins his first Dakar stage, and becomes the first leader in the motorcycle category

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Al-Attiyah Interim Leader

5-time Dakar Champion Nasser Al Attiyah He started second and was already in the lead at the finish line with a time of 1 minute 56.6 seconds and 26 inches ahead of his Dacia teammate and Rally Raid champion. Lucas Moraes.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. the car is leaving

Lucas Moraes and Nasser Al Attiyah’s Dasia leaves first by car (Ultimate). In the automotive category, three different drivers have won the Saudi Prologue. Nasser Al Attiyah won in 2021 and 2022, Matthias Ekström won in 2023 and 2024, and Henk Lategan won last year.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Edgar Cannet signs up for Prologue on a motorcycle

Confirmed. In his debut race in the RallyGP category, the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing driver edgar canet Won the prologue stage of the Bike Dakar in Yanbu with a 3-inch lead over the reigning champion. daniel sanders 5 inches more than the two-time Dakar Champion (2020 and 2024) ricky brabec (sling). Tosha Chalayna was seventh with 23 inches. Canet becomes the first leader of the Dakar ’26 Rally.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Edgar Canet beats Brabec

Watch out, the motorcycle Dakar winner has just arrived. ricky brabec Kane then held a 5-inch lead in the prologue. Only two favorites remain to enter: Shalayna and Sanders.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Edgar Canet remains interim leader

The GP Rally begins and Edgar Canet stays at the front of the prologue, 11 inches ahead of Luciano Benavidez, 16 inches ahead of Ross Branch and 19 inches ahead of Doherty, leading to first Rally 2. Van Beveren rounded out the top five with 24 inches, and Howes was sixth with 32 inches. Lauren Santorino placed 19th with a time of 1:07.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage. Edgar Canet, Interim Motorcycle Leader

2025 Rally 2 winner and current Rally GP driver Edgar Canet; He just set his best time in the prologue, a time of 11’31″9. Tosha Shalayna and Daniel Saunders They will be the last on the bikes to leave before the cars enter the track.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

Everyone in Rally2 had already reached the finish line, with the South African athlete having the best time. michael docherty He beat Austria’s Tobias Ebster and Poland’s Konrad Dabrowski by 11 minutes, 50.1 seconds and 26 inches, and beat American Preston Campbell by 30 inches. Josep PedroSvitko, the best Spaniard, dropped to provisional 21st place with a time of 1 minute 19 seconds. Czech Stefan Svitko started first in RallyGP. The 15 RallyGP drivers will start with a 2 minute difference.

Let’s go! @A_Vanbeveren begins, @rickyB357 It’s warming up🔥 #Dakar2026 #DakarinSaudi pic.twitter.com/DxYRyEF4Oq

— Dakar Rally (@dakar) January 3, 2026

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

Josep Pedro Tentatively 11th place, 46 inches behind Guienes. At the end of Rally 2, Arnau Djed was 15th at 1:00 and Javi Vega was 18th at 1:04. Carlos López, Iñigo Zardoya, João Carles Guillén, Fernando Dominguez, Ricardo Lastra, Juancal Torres, Captain Rashid Alualu, Mario Garrido and Borja Perez will soon be on the track. Remember that the general classification includes only prologues.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

Bike prologue leader change. romanian emmanuel guinnessHe is defending his Original by MOTUL title and just set a best time of 12’23″4, beating Gavard by 29 inches.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

In Saudi Dakar, the winners of the two-wheel prologue are Ricky Brabec (2021), Daniel Saunders (2022 and 2025), Toby Price (2023) and Tosha Chalayna (2024). Indeed, Dakar ’25 winner Daniel Saunders will start last. Currently, Rally 2 drivers finish with Tomas de Gabaldo’s first standard time (12’52″3).

#Dakar2026 – Prologue
Yanbu ➡️ Yanbu
🛣 Liaison: 74km – Special: 22km
🕒 DSS (GMT+3):
🏍 9:15
🚗 11:46

Follow the race live:
👉 https://t.co/BrruP0pcjg #DakarinSaudi pic.twitter.com/Bf1ySxGoiq

— Dakar Rally (@dakar) January 3, 2026

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

The prologue consists of a 41km first link from the Yanbu bivouac to the start of the 23km special circular route. The first part passes through a gorge, with a difficult section before 10 kilometers, and the rest is open terrain. According to ASO, the track is 69% dirt, 17% sand, and 14% rocky. Once the special is over, it’s another 33 kilometers back to the bivouac.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

The fastest driver will win the right to choose their starting position for Stage 1 during tonight’s ceremony. Whether it’s a motorcycle or a car, the winner will have the privilege of choosing the last. The big difference is that motorbikes already account for some of the times in the general classification today, but car times do not count in the general classification.

Dakar Rally ’26 Prologue Stage

Good morning, Mr. Dakarian. The 2026 Dakar Rally begins this Saturday with the Prologue Stage, the shortest special stage of the rally at 22 kilometers. Tomás de Gabaldo (motorcycle) has the honor of being the first to depart

Live blog: 5571

Source: Mundo Deportivo

Kyle

I am a writer at Sportish, where I mainly cover sports news. I’ve also written for The Guardian and ESPN Brasil, and my work has been featured on NBC Sports, SI.com and more. Before working in journalism, I was an athlete: I played football for Colgate University and competed in the US Open Cross Country Championships.

Motorsports

Red Bull boss: “Building your own engines is crazy. Only we could do it”

Published

2 hours ago

January 13, 2026

Ruth

Red Bull boss: “Building your own engines is crazy. Only we could do it”

The Red Bull Formula 1 team, which has used Honda engines in the past seasons, will switch to its own engines in cooperation with Ford as of 2026.

Bulls boss Laurent Mekies hopes the engines can compete with traditional manufacturers Mercedes and Ferrari.

“It must be madness to start producing your own engines. Only Red Bull can get involved and start producing their own engines when their competitors have been doing this for 90 years. Tough months are ahead and it’s hard to hope that we’ll come up with a top-level engine right away.”

“But I am proud of our partnership with Ford. We will have a difficult start, but we will see,” Mekis said.

F1 will have new regulations on engines and aerodynamics from the 2026 season.

Source: Sport UA

Ruth

Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.

Motorsports

Rooney offers to become Manchester United assistant

Published

18 hours ago

January 12, 2026

Sophia

Rooney offers to become Manchester United assistant

wayne rooneythe legend of manchester unitedI would like to join the coaching staff of michael carrickYes, as everything indicates, the former midfielder will be hired as the new interim coach of the Old Trafford team this week.

After dismissal Ruben Amorim Last week, United opted to bring in a temporary coach until the end of the season. Darren Fletcher, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, CarrickNaturally, the Manchenian club chose the latter.

Considering the impending arrival of the former midfielder, who had already served as interim player after the sacking of the manager. solskjaer In 2021, looney is positioning itself as one of the potential English assistants.

“Of course, I will accept without hesitation,” he said. looney On the UK BBC Network. Since his departure, “I’m not begging for the job, but if I was offered it I would take it. The most important thing now is to hire a coach.” Amorimhe united tied with him leeds united They were then eliminated from the FA Cup by Brighton.

“Nare” Michael, or Fletcher, or John O’Shea Whoever it is, it has to be someone who knows the club. Having someone who knows the club well, cares about the club and knows what it takes to be a player for the club. manchester united. “That’s what’s needed,” he added. looney.

Source: Mundo Deportivo

Sophia

Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.

Motorsports

England push for Gallagher

Published

21 hours ago

January 12, 2026

Sophia

A few days ago we talked about the strong interest from England, particularly Birmingham. conor gallagherAtlético Madrid player. he Aston Villa of Unai Emery He wanted the Colchonero midfielder to strengthen his perimeter in the winter market.

However, in addition to this team, tottenham and manchester united They also asked the Englishman, number 13 in the Red and White team, about his minutes played so far this season. There are many candidates for his possible departure, but this does not make Atletico Madrid “uneasy”.

And at Metropolitano they have made it clear that they have no intention of making any concessions. gallagher. As we have said for some time, they will only accept loans if they include a mandatory purchase at the end of the course (which is what English clubs are looking for). In addition, with an amount close to the 40 million euros that Atlético paid in 2024, chelsea For soccer players.

In recent hours, journalists have said: Matteo Moretto or Fabrizio Romano They have assured Aston Villa are intensifying negotiations for his signature. gallagherwhile Mattress Entity assures us that there are no open operations with any indication of impending closure. Fellow journalist Ben Jacobs has suggested that Atletico would be willing to let the player go for just over 30 million euros, which would include a few extra kilos in rental fees.

What is clear is that in the UK they are of great interest. gallagher. His qualities are highly valued on the island, something that is repeated in each transfer window. Furthermore, with this year’s World Cup around the corner, the midfielder could decide to leave to become a permanent player with one of these teams and be chosen as England manager again. thomas tuchelwas not considered in the previous call.

Source: Mundo Deportivo

Sophia