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Dakar Rally 2025: Ekstrom Leads Stage 11 as Al-Rajhi Takes Control

During the penultimate stage of the Dakar Rally on Thursday, Ford driver Mattias Ekstrom showcased impressive speed, clinching the fastest time, while Saudi driver Yazeed Al-Rajhi of Overdrive solidified his lead against rival Henk Lategan from the factory Toyota team.

This stage, critical to the 2025 Dakar, required competitors to navigate 275 kilometers of challenging dunes in the renowned Empty Quarters of Saudi Arabia, concluding the day at Shubayth.

Entering this stage, Lategan held a substantial lead of 2 minutes and 27 seconds in the overall rankings. However, a difficult run for the South African shifted momentum toward Al-Rajhi, putting him in a prime position to secure his first-ever victory in this legendary rally.

Al-Rajhi, along with Ekstrom and Dacia’s Nasser Al-Attiyah, dominated Stage 11, finishing nearly ten minutes ahead of their closest competitors. Al-Attiyah, a five-time Dakar champion, initially took the lead using the new Dacia Sandrider but fell behind after Ekstrom surged ahead at the 94-kilometer mark in his Ford Raptor.

Al-Rajhi, driving a customer Toyota Hilux, maintained second position for much of the stage, narrowing the gap to under a minute midway through, while Al-Attiyah lost ground for reasons yet to be clarified. Nevertheless, Al-Attiyah rallied in the latter sections of the stage, closing in behind Ekstrom, who ultimately finished just 41 seconds ahead, marking his fifth stage win in Dakar history.

The outcome of this stage marked consecutive victories for Ford, following teammate Nani Roma’s win in Stage 10 on Wednesday. While Al-Rajhi fought to retain his position, he ultimately finished solidly in third place after being overtaken by Al-Attiyah at a crucial checkpoint. Despite this, he remains strong in the standings, with Lategan dramatically falling to fifth, trailing by over ten minutes.

As it stands, Al-Rajhi has regained the top spot in the overall classification, leading with a margin of 6 minutes and 11 seconds over Lategan, just as the final stage awaits. Ekstrom also finds himself in a strong position, now 4 minutes and 16 seconds ahead of Al-Attiyah, aiming for his first overall podium finish after several attempts.

Other competitors have established their standings, with Mitch Guthrie Jr. solidifying fifth and Century’s Mathieu Serradori maintaining sixth after finishing within the top ten on Thursday. Meanwhile, X-raid’s Joao Ferreira remains the highest-ranked Mini driver in eighth place, followed closely by Overdrive’s Juan Cruz Yacopini.

Dakar 2025 – Classification after Stage 11 (Top 10)

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