Toyota's South African Henk Lategan regained the overall lead in the Dakar Rally on Wednesday with a two minutes and 27 seconds advantage over Saudi Arabia's Yazeed Al-Rajhi going into the penultimate stage.

Ford secured its second straight stage win at the Dakar Rally on Thursday, with Mattias Ekstrom following up Nani Roma's Stage 10 win by besting Nasser Al-Attiyah -- his rival for the final podium place -- by 41 seconds on the dunes of Saudi Arabia's Empty Quarter.

South African Henk Lategan (Toyota) consolidated his lead atop the driver standings of the Dakar Rally by winning the eighth stage on Monday.

Henk Lategan and Yazeed Al-Rajhi will duel in the Saudi sand for their first Dakar Rally title after swapping the lead for a second straight day

Henk Lategan on Wednesday took a step closer to turning his dream of winning the Dakar Rally into reality by reclaiming the overall race lead with only two stages to go in Saudi A

Saudi Arabia's local hero Yazeed Al-Rajhi is in the overall lead for the first time at this year's Dakar Rally after finishing third in stage nine on Tuesday, taking over from Henk Lategan who suffered two punctures.

Nineteen-year-old Saood Variawa of South Africa became the youngest top-class driver to win a stage in the Dakar Rally.

Toyota's Henk Lategan dominated stage eight of the Dakar Rally on Monday, and despite a speed violation, the win extended his overall lead after the previous day's chaotic race had virtually wiped out his advantage over closest rival Yazeed Al-Rajhi.

Qatari Nasser al-Attiyah hit the gas on Tuesday to win stage 9 of the Dakar Rally as Saudi Yazeed al-Rajhi took the lead in the drivers' standings.

The shortest stage so far in 2025 caused a lot of drama as drivers encountered the famous dunes of Saudi Arabia