The beginning of the second week of the 2026 Dakar Rally unfolded positively for KTM, who won Stage 7 on Sunday and continue to lead the rally.
Although Sanders didn’t finish in the stage top-three, it was a KTM 1-2 on Stage 7. Luciano Benavides set the fastest time ahead of Edgar Canet. For the Argentinian, it is his second stage win of the rally after Stage 5, while for Canet his second place is a strong rebound after losing 10 hours on that fifth stage when he was one of several riders to pick up a rear puncture.
Adrien van Beveren remains seventh after the seventh stage and almost an hour off the lead, but with third place on Sunday he achieved his best stage result of the rally so far.
Nani Roma was only 10th-fastest on Stage 7 but maintains a podium position in third place overall, 7’15’’ off the lead and six seconds ahead of Henk Lategan who drops to fourth after finishing 13th on Stage 7.
Carlos Sainz remains the third Ford in the overall standings, now fifth and 10’26’’ off the lead.
Behind, sixth placed Sebastien Loeb continues to chip away at his gap to the front, now 15’39’’ after setting the sixth-fastest time on Stage 7. He was the second-fastest Dacia, one place and 10 seconds behind Lucas Moraes who is now ninth overall and just under 25 minutes off the lead.
Former RallyGP-class Dakar winner Toby Price had his best four-wheeled showing so far on Stage 7, setting the fourth-fastest time in his Toyota, five minutes slower than Ekstrom and 34 seconds slower than the leading Hilux of Joao Ferreira
