Qatar’s ace rally driver Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah wrote another historic chapter in Dakar Rally history, mastering a turbulent two‑week contest to secure his sixth victory in the cars category and his first with Dacia.

Al Attiyah's sixth Dakar win also made him one of the very few to win the title with four different manufacturers — Volkswagen, MINI, Toyota, and Dacia. Al Attiyah, 55, has demonstrated remarkable longevity and consistency. He now sits just two victories behind record-holder Stéphane Peterhansel, firmly cementing his status among Dakar Rally’s all-time greats.

The star driver endured plenty of uneven swings in form, but delivered when it mattered most, taking two crucial stage wins and avoiding the misfortune that caught out many of his closest rivals.​

The first week of Dakar 2026 saw Ford emerge as a serious threat, with all four factory drivers exploiting the upgraded Raptor to challenge Toyota and Dacia. But Ford’s pace fluctuated sharply from day to day, while Toyota also struggled for consistency with its new‑for‑2026 Hilux.

That volatility opened the door for Al Attiyah on Stage 6, where he claimed his first win of the rally and moved into the overall lead for the first time.​

Even after that breakthrough, the fight for overall honours remained wide open heading into the second week. It was not until Stage 10 that Al Attiyah began to emerge as the clear favourite, capitalising on errors and setbacks for his key rivals.​

The decisive shift came on the second marathon leg, when Ford duo Mattias Ekstrom and Mitch Guthrie lost substantial time with navigation mistakes. A day later, four‑time winner Carlos Sainz Sr suffered a similar setback, incurring a 15‑minute penalty for missing a waypoint on top of earlier delays.​

Al Attiyah’s path to victory was effectively cleared on Stage 11, when 2025 runner‑up Henk Lategan dropped out of the victory fight after a broken wheel nut cost him more than four hours in his Toyota. That incident left Ford’s Nani Roma as Al Attiyah’s only realistic challenger.​

Armed with a buffer of around 12 minutes heading into the final two days, the Dacia Sandriders driver managed the risk smartly, controlling his pace and avoiding trouble to reach the finish with a winning margin of 9 minutes 42 seconds over Roma.​

Nasser's success is also significant for Dacia and the wider Renault Group. It marks just the second overall Dakar victory for a Renault‑linked programme since Claude Marreau’s win at the 1982 Paris‑Dakar Rally in a Renault 20 Turbo 4x4, and adds to the brand’s history that also includes Jean‑Louis Schlesser’s two triumphs in Renault‑engined buggies.​

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