January 19, 2026

Dakar 2026: Eurol teams give everything until the finish

The Dakar Rally 2026 has come to an end. It became a classic edition with many highlights, but also inevitable low points. The riders supported by Eurol managed to achieve no fewer than seven stage victories, including the prologue. Nevertheless, for some the feeling prevailed that more had been possible. In particular Mitchel van den Brink, who finished third in the general classification, had hoped for more – and perhaps also deserved it. There is much praise for Kay Huzink and Ian Olthof, who both rode an impressive Dakar Rally as rookies. Toyota driver Saood Variawa also managed to impress despite his young age.

Trucks

The sporting low point for Eurol Rally Sport came in stage 10. Due to technical problems, Mitchel van den Brink together with his crew had to relinquish his leading position in the general classification to Vaidotas Žala, who ultimately also managed to win the Dakar Rally. Dakar is unforgiving.

In the final stages Mitchel managed to increase the pace again and keep the pressure at a maximum, but both Žala and Loprais made no major mistakes. As a result, the top three remained unchanged in the second part of the rally and Mitchel secured a well deserved podium position with a strong third place. Martin van den Brink finished eighth in the general classification and fulfilled an important role during the rally with strong assistance work within the team.

For Kay Huzink and his crew the rally proceeded in a similar manner. Stage 12 brought the necessary technical problems, causing him to lose his strong fourth position in the general classification and drop back to seventh place. In the final days Kay continued to attack, partly because sixth position was still within reach. With victory in the final stage he ultimately fell just 37 seconds short of P6. Nevertheless, the entire Kuipers-Jongbloed Hybrid team can look back with satisfaction on a very strong Dakar debut.

Gert Huzink dropped out early for the general classification, but did manage to impressively secure a stage victory.

Overall general classification – Trucks

1. Vaidotas Zala, Team de Rooy – 56:58:38 hours
2. Ales Loprais, Team de Rooy +20:18 min.
3. MITCHEL VAN DEN BRINK, Eurol Rallysport +29:03 min.
7. KAY HUZINK, Kuipers-Jongbloed 06:18:56 hours
8. MARTIN VAN DEN BRINK, Eurol Rallysport 07:42:07 hours

Cars

Both factory teams of Toyota had hoped for more beforehand, but this year it was Dacia and Ford that dominated the rally. The final victory went to former Eurol and Toyota driver Nasser Al-Attiyah.

The sporting low point within the Toyota ranks was the significant time loss of former Eurol driver Henk Lategan in stage 11, causing his chances of a top classification to disappear. For the Eurol drivers of Toyota GAZOO Racing SA, Saood Variawa was the standout, with a stage victory and a top 10 position in the final classification. The team is now fully focusing on the development of a new car, with a view to a new attack on victory at a future Dakar.

Overall general classification – Cars

1. Nasser Al-Attiyah, Dacia Sandriders – 48:56:53 hours
2. Nani Roma, Ford Racing +09:42 min.
3. Mattias Ekström, Ford Racing +14:33 min.
10. SAOOD VARIAWA, TGR SA +01:23:36 hours
14. GUY BOTTERILL +01:43:37 hours
18. JOAO FERREIRA +03:17:48 hours

Motorcycles

The battle for the final victory in the motorcycle category was unprecedentedly exciting until the very last moment. In a true thriller, Ricky Brabec lost the Dakar Rally by only 2 seconds, after getting lost eight kilometres before the finish of the final stage. At the start of that stage his lead was still 3:20 minutes. The victory ultimately went to Luciano Benavides.

For Eurol rider Ian Olthof, his Dakar debut became one to be proud of. A dislocated shoulder in the first week briefly seemed to throw a spanner in the works, but proved not to be a showstopper. Ian rode the rally in a controlled manner, which was his previously set goal. With daily results between P47 and P38 he eventually finished in a respectable 41st place in the general classification.

Overall general classification – Motorcycles

1. Luciano Benavides, KTM Factory – 49:00:41 hours
2. Ricky Brabec, Honda HRC +0:02 sec.
3. Tosha Schareina, Honda HRC +25:12 min.
41. IAN OLTHOF, HT Rally Raid +15:55:34 hours

We are proud of the performances of all Eurol teams and are already looking forward to the next edition of the toughest rally in the world.

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