Australian Daniel Sanders Secures KTM’s 20th Victory at Dakar
The Aussie dominates the race on his 5th attempt, leading from start to finish.
The 47th edition of the world’s toughest off-road race has come to an end after 12 grueling stages covering 7,453 kilometers of mixed terrain that saw riders enduring extreme temperatures, technical rocky sections, fast plateaus, towering sand dunes, and challenging navigation.
Today’s final stage provided a mass start spectacle in the desert reminiscent of the original Senegalese Lac Rose tradition when competitors battled together to the finish line. In the end, the two-week battle in the desert was conquered by Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders, who snatched his first Dakar Rally victory to become the second Australian to win the iconic race after Toby Price’s two triumphs in 2016 and 2019. On his 5th attempt, Sanders’ victory also gives KTM its 20th Dakar title.

From start to finish Sanders dominated the race, culminating with a sixth-place finish on stage 12’s mass-start special that was enough to crown him the overall champion. Throughout the race, Daniel showcased his speed and skill, winning the prologue, the opening stage and the ultra-tough 48-hour Chrono stage to take an early lead. Claiming two further stage wins on his KTM 450 Rally and never giving up his overall advantage, Sanders is only the second rider in history to lead the Dakar Rally from start to finish since Marc Coma in 2009.
“When I came out of the dunes… I could see the bivouac and I just got instant chills through my whole body, I was super nervous. I couldn’t believe it. All the emotions started coming through and I could see the finishing line. It’s the biggest race in the world for motorbikes and off-roading. To win the six-day international enduro and now the Dakar, it’s just ticked off all the goals for my career and everything I’ve wanted to achieve.” – Daniel Sanders
Behind Sanders’ dust, Honda’s Tosha Schareina also put in a brilliant performance throughout the 13 days of racing to take second place overall. On only his fourth Dakar and having never finished in the top ten before, the Spaniard pushed Sanders right to the very end where 8’50” separated them after 53 hours of competition — an amazing turnaround for the young Spaniard considering that at last year’s Dakar he crashed out on the first stage resulting in a wrist fracture.

With a point to prove, Schareina remained calm and collected following his masterclass in the huge dunes yesterday where he took a stunning seven minutes out of Sanders’ lead. Having watched his idols race in the most famous rally in the world when he was younger, Schareina was able to fulfil his dream of not only competing against them but stepping onto the podium as the highest placed finisher for Honda.
Giving a second podium position to Honda, Adrien Van Beveren repeated his 2024 Dakar performance securing a third place overall finish as the experienced Frenchman also notched up his sixth Dakar Rally career stage victory. Getting into his rhythm in the second week, Van Beveren managed to keep Luciano Benavides behind him. With almost an eight minute lag, Benavides finished the race in fourth place overall — the best result so far in his career.

Elsewhere, 2024 title-holder Ricky Brabec couldn’t pull off a back-to-back Dakar victory, finishing with a fifth place overall while also adding another stage win to the ten he has already achieved so far. However, Ricky Brabec was happy with his performance considering he had not been able to go back behind the bars of his Honda CRF450 Rally until November due to a tibia plateau fracture he suffered during a crash at the 2024 season ending Rallye Du Maroc.
Brabec crossed the finish line in unison with another rider returning from injury, fellow American Skyler Howes, who last competed in a World Rally-Raid Championship round back in June at the Desafío Ruta 40. Riding in his seventh Dakar Rally, Howes’ sixth place position overall didn’t reflect on how he’d kept the pace regularly with the front runners and although slightly frustrated with his performance, he’s already looking forward to getting himself back stronger for the upcoming rounds this season.

As for young American Mason Klein, things once again didn’t go as planned. Having secured his place as a Kove factory rider at this year’s Dakar, Klein was poised to take things to the next level and finally show his full potential. But despite a promising start, Mason found himself battling not only significant pain due to severe tendonitis in his right arm but also multiple mechanical issues with his Kove bike throughout the race. Ultimately, his machine completely broke down during Stage 7, forcing Mason out of the race. In turn, his Kove teammate, Neels Theric carried the torch, finishing 15th overall and 6th in Rally 2.
Edgar Canet, the youngest official Dakar rider in history at the age of 19 years, also became the youngest rider to win the Rally 2 class, as well as finishing as the best rookie in eighth-place overall. The emerging Spanish star triumphed in front of Austrian hope Tobias Ebster. Romain Dumontier in third place accomplished a fourth consecutive podium finish in the class and was also the leading non-KTM rider behind the handlebars of his Honda.
After the dust settled in the Arabian Peninsula, KTM won 9 of the thirteen specials on this edition of the rally (5 for Daniel Sanders, 2 for Luciano Benavides and 2 for Michael Docherty). Honda completed the rally with 3 stage successes (won by Adrien Van Beveren, Ricky Brabec and Tosha Schareina), while Sherco achieved one thanks to Lorenzo Santolino.
Dakar 2025 Top 10 Final Ranking

Photos by A.S.O./F.Gooden/DPPI, KTM and Honda.
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He who navigates, wins . He who follows, is lost. I’m happy for Honda, an honest company. The Honda team are legends