Overview
- Race control confirmed a six-minute penalty for Ross Branch for speeding in neutralized sections, promoting Edgar Canet to the Stage 1 victory and overall lead in motorcycles.
- The revised motorcycle general classification shows Canet on 3:27:42, leading by 1:05 over Daniel Sanders and 1:37 over Ricky Brabec, with Tosha Schareina at +2:21; Branch drops to seventh at +4:55.
- Canet, who also won the prologue, is the youngest motorcycle stage winner in Dakar history and now faces the disadvantage of opening the road on Monday’s special.
- In cars, Guillaume De Mévius (Mini X-Raid) took the stage by 40 seconds from Nasser Al-Attiyah, as rivals including Mattias Ekström and Carlos Sainz eased late to avoid opening the route.
- Rocky tracks and dry riverbeds produced punctures and navigation traps on the Yanbu loop, with teams bracing for a 400 km test to Al-Ula that is expected to magnify those risks.