Factory Ford driver Mattias Ekstrom drew first blood in the 2026 Dakar Rally, edging out team-mate Mitch Guthrie in Saturday’s Prologue.
The 48th edition of Dakar kicked off in earnest on 3 January, with a total of 72 cars taking the start in the Ultimate class. The Prologue featured a 95km route around the Saudi Arabian port city of Yanbu, though only 22km were timed, resulting in minimal gaps at the front of the field.
Driving the V8-powered Ford Raptor, two-time DTM champion Ekstrom set the fastest time of the day, reaching the finish line in 10m48.7s. This was his third Prologue victory in five appearances, after his previous triumphs with Audi in 2023 and ‘24.
Guthrie finished eight seconds behind Ekstrom in second, sealing a 1-2 for Ford as the American marque makes it second factory appearance in the Dakar.
X-raid driver Guillaume de Mevius finished just two tenths behind Guthrie in third, establishing Mini as Ford’s closest challenger in the Prologue. De Mevius was again partnered by four-time Dakar-winning navigator Mathieu Baumel, who has returned to active competition after losing his right leg in an accident in January last year.
Dakar star Nasser Al-Attiyah led the way for Renault Group brand Dacia in fourth, finishing another three tenths adrift of De Mevius.
Fifth place went to factory Toyota driver Seth Quintero, with reigning champion Yazeed Al-Rajhi following him closely behind in sixth on his Overdrive-run Hilux.
Eryk Goczal was a surprise seventh in EnergyLand’s customer Toyota, matching Quintero and Al-Rajhi’s times to the second.
Rally legend Carlos Sainz Sr returned to the Dakar on Tuesday following his early exit from the 2025 event, guiding his Ford to eighth place, 15s behind team-mate Ekstrom.
Matthieu Serradori ended up ninth-fastest for the underdog Century marque, while the top 10 was rounded out by Toyota South Africa’s Saood Variawa.
Nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb made a relatively low-key start to Dakar with 17th place, more than half a minute off the top spot. He was closely followed by team-mate Lucas Moraes, who has joined Dacia this year after winning the 2025 World Rally-Raid Championship with Toyota.
Unlike in the bike category, Prologue times will not count toward the overall classification. However, the 10 fastest drivers on Saturday will earn the right to choose their starting positions for Sunday’s first full-fledged stage in Yanbu.
Prologue Results - Top 10:
| Pos | Driver | Car | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mattias Ekstrom | Ford | - |
| 2 | Mitch Guthrie | Ford | +8s |
| 3 | Guillaume de Mevius | Mini | +8s |
| 4 | Nasser Al-Attiyah | Dacia | +8s |
| 5 | Seth Quintero | Toyota | +14s |
| 6 | Yazeed Al-Rajhi | Toyota | +14s |
| 7 | Eryk Goczal | Toyota | +14s |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz Sr | Ford | +15s |
| 9 | Matthieu Serradori | Century | +15s |
| 10 | Saood Variawa | Toyota | +18s |
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