2026 Dakar Rally

Last updated
2025 Dakar Rally
Part of the Dakar Rally
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Host countrySaudi Arabia
Dates run3–17 January 2026
Start Yanbu
Finish Yanbu
Stages14
Stage surfaceSand, rocks, gravel, tarmac

The 2026 Dakar Rally will be a rally raid event that will take place in Saudi Arabia. It is the 48th edition of the Dakar Rally, organized by Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), and the 7th time Saudi Arabia has hosted the event. The event will take place from 3 to 17 January 2026. [1]

Contents

Background

The presentation and race outline will take place on 13th November 2025 in Paris, France.

This year, the route will start and finish in Yanbu passing through Ha'il's desert stages, Al-Qassim, and to Riyadh for the rest day. Notably skipping the Empty Quarter, the rally will head west to new regions previously unexplored by the event to Al-Bahah, Aseer, and Jizan.

The race will consist of 14 days of racing, divided into the prologue and 13 stages. There will be four loop stages and four split route stages in two back-to-back pairs, with the cars and trucks taking a separate route to the bikes.

Competitors face a hybrid 48h Chrono/marathon on stage four, with a bare-bones bivouac where mutual assistance is permitted without time limits and class T5.2 trucks reach the bivouac to assist competitors. Stage nine to 10 will be a more traditional marathon still with a minimal bivouac. [2]

Alternative zero-emission or hybrid drives are represented again by the Mission 1000 category now in its third year. [3]

Timeline

Stages

StageDateStartFinishSpecial (km)Total (km)Assistance
(km)
FIMFIAFIMFIA
PrologueSaturday3 January 2026 Yanbu Yanbu2398-
1Sunday4 January 2026YanbuYanbu305518367
2Monday5 January 2026Yanbu Al-Ula 400504-
3Tuesday6 January 2026Al-UlaAl-Ula422666-
4 (Marathon)Wednesday7 January 2026Al-UlaBivouac Refuge417451492526-
5 (Marathon)Thursday8 January 2026Bivouac Refuge Ha'il 356372417428448
6Friday9 January 2026Ha'il Riyadh 331920-
Rest DaySaturday10 January 2026Riyadh-
7Sunday11 January 2026Riyadh Wadi ad-Dawasir 462876623
8Monday12 January 2026Wadi ad-DawasirWadi ad-Dawasir481717-
9Tuesday13 January 2026Wadi ad-DawasirBivouac Refuge418410540531-
10Wednesday14 January 2026Bivouac Refuge Bisha 371421417469358
11Thursday15 January 2026Bisha Al Henakiyah 347882777
12Friday16 January 2026Al HenakiyahYanbu310718362
13Saturday17 January 2026YanbuYanbu105141-
Total4,7484,8407,9067,9943,562

References

  1. ↑ "Dakar Rally Route 2026 – New Route Across Saudi Arabia, No Empty Quarter!". Timeout Racing. 2025-10-28. Archived from the original on 2025-11-07. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  2. ↑ Pearson, Jon. "Dakar Rally 2026: First route details revealed – full bike entry list". Enduro21. Archived from the original on 2025-11-14. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  3. ↑ "The Route of Dakar". www.dakar.com. Archived from the original on 2025-10-03. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
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