DAKAR 2026

Loprais wins stage and leads category, at the moment

The order of the prologue changed in stage 1. Yesterday's runner-up, Vaidotas Žala, took advantage of the already marked line to take the lead at km 28. The Lithuanian from De Rooy quickly built a 50-second cushion over Martin Soltys (Buggyra), while for the "opener" Mitchel van den Brink the task proved more difficult. The prologue winner dropped to fifth, 59 seconds off the pace, tied with defending champion Martin Macík, a sign that the strategy of opening the track was indeed penalizing the best. Kay Huzink completed the provisional podium 57 seconds behind.

At km 108, Žala maintained the lead, firmly controlling his rivals. Mitchel van den Brink moved up to second place, 1m15s behind, while the fight for third place remained tight: Aleš Loprais and Martin Soltys were less than 35 seconds behind the Dutchman. Martin Macík, the defending champion, was already facing serious difficulties, more than 3 minutes behind.

At km 150, Žala extended his lead to almost 2 minutes, consolidating a comfortable position. The fight for second place intensified: van den Brink occupied second position, 1m56s behind, just 4 seconds ahead of Aleš Loprais (+2m00s). Macík remained isolated in fourth place, 3m41s behind, signaling a possible fall of the champion behind the leading group.

The turning point of the stage occurred between km 180 and km 215. Vaidotas Žala, until then a solid leader, collapsed and began to lose significant time. He had already lost more than 6 minutes by kilometer 180, and these losses amplified to 9 minutes by kilometer 215, a dramatic change of route that suggested mechanical or navigational difficulties in the second half of the special stage.

Aleš Loprais took advantage of the situation to take the lead with a comfortable margin of 4m19s over Mitchel van den Brink, while defending champion Martin Macík saw the gap widen to 9m29s, a devastating gap that definitively removed him from the fight for victory.

By kilometer 260 (the last checkpoint before the finish), Loprais consolidated his lead with more than 4 minutes of advantage, maintaining an impressive pace. The chase was fundamentally a family affair: van den Brink in second (+4m17s) and the De Rooy team, through Mitchel van den Brink (who was driving a second family truck), also present in the top 6 (+13m15s). Vaidotas Žala saw victory slip away, finishing just 8m45s behind the leader, while Macík was 9m29s behind — a stage that set him back in the fight for the overall classification.

Thus, Aleš Loprais crossed the finish line in first place with a time of 3h42m15s, maintaining the top of the classification despite a penalty applied to him. Mitchel van den Brink finished second, 1m47s behind, consolidating a consistent chase that established him as the second name in the category. The pendulum swung in favor of Martin Macík at the end of the stage, allowing him to overcome difficulties in the intermediate phase and finish third, 7m19s behind.

Vaidotas Žala, despite a dominant initial performance, saw victory slip through his fingers in the final stretch, finishing fourth, 7m32s behind, a fall that reflected the difficulties encountered in the second half of the special stage.

Loprais' victory established the Czech driver as the first leader in the truck category for the 2026 edition, consolidating a performance that, despite the setback of a penalty, maintained his top position in a category where consistency and adaptation to changing conditions prove to be fundamental.

Trucks top 3:

1-Ales Loprais / David Kripal / Jiri Stross (Iveco Powerstar/Loprais Team De Rooy FPT) 

2-Martin Van Den Brink / Rijk Mouw / Peter Willemsen (Iveco Powerstar/Eurol Rallysport) 

3-Martin Macik / Frantisek Tomasek / David Svanda (MM Technology/Iveco Dakar Evo4) in third place 7m19s behind.

by Autonews