ALULA, Saudi Arabia: Australia’s defending Dakar Rally motorbike champion Daniel Sanders moved into the overall lead after winning Monday’s second stage in Saudi Arabia.
The 31-year-old covered the 518km route from Yanbu to AlUla in 4hrs 13mins 37 seconds to cross the line 1min 35s clear of KTM teammate Edgar Canet, who lost time with a couple of minor crashes.
American Ricky Brabec, the 2024 winner, completed the day’s podium for Honda.
With this 10th stage win in motorsport’s toughest challenge, Sanders climbed to the top of the bike standings by half a minute from Canet, winner of the prologue and opening stage, with Brabec 2min 18s back in third.
“The navigation was really tricky in some places but we fixed a couple of mistakes quickly and didn’t lose too much time,” said Sanders, who has been competing in the Dakar since 2021.
