The 2025 World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) served up a frantic race to the line to decide who took top honours in the Ultimate class. An intense week of racing on the Saharan dunes at the latest Rallye du Maroc held the entire bivouac in suspense until the very last kilometre. It’s been an unforgettable World Championship season that took us to all four corners of the globe and kept us guessing until the final dune was crossed. As the dust now settles in Morocco let’s find out who emerged victorious…
We have a brand-new winner of the W2RC Ultimate Drivers’ title… Lucas Moraes! The Toyota Gazoo Racing driver carried all the momentum from last month’s win in Portugal over to North Africa. The Brazilian racer chased down his goal all week, ending with today’s dramatic 31km Power Stage. Moraes was hardly able to contain his emotions as he parked his Hilux on the finish line.
« What can I say? We’re World Champion! I’ve been working my whole life to be a World Champion one day. Tonight we’re going to party! » – Lucas Moraes
Moraes denied Dacia driver Nasser Al-Attiyah from celebrating his fourth consecutive W2RC Ultimate class Drivers’title. Al-Attiyah’s narrow rankings lead was under constant pressure all week before finally being overturned at the conclusion of the Power Stage due to a time penalty. We’ll see the Qatari back on the front foot when he looks to win a sixth Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia.
Away from the World Championship battle, it was Sébastien Loeb who won the Ultimate class race at this Rallye du Maroc. The Frenchman takes top spot at a W2RC event for the first time since the 2022 Andalucía Rally. The Dacia driver will be hoping this is the start of a winning streak when he drives his 10th Dakar in January. Making it a double celebration in car #219 was Loeb’s co-driver Édouard Boulanger, winning the 2025 FIA World Rally-Raid Navigators’ Championship thanks to this result.
« Victory at the Rallye du Maroc. Great week with the entire Dacia Sandriders team, and the World Navigator Champion title for Édouard Boulanger, as the cherry on top. All the lights are green for the Dakar Rally. » – Sébastien Loeb
Henk Lategan – the latest recruit to the Red Bull Desert Wings squad – came to Morocco with hopes of being crowned this year’s best driver in the W2RC’s Ultimate class. A number of setbacks on Stage 2 then saw the South African’s title charge derailed. However, the Toyota Gazoo Racing driver dug deep to win Stage 3 and secure third place on the championship’s final leaderboard.
« Unfortunately we broke a front driveshaft about 2km into today’s Power Stage. Overall, we gained a lot of experience here we can use next year. » – Henk Lategan
Lategan’s Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Seth Quintero also took the chance to show his true speed in Morocco. A win on the final stage added to the American’s points tally as he finished the season in fifth place of the W2RC’s Ultimate rankings.
A combined total mileage of 10,000km was completed by the four Ford Raptor T1+ machines racing this Rallye du Maroc; Carlos Sainz, Nani Roma, Mitch Guthrie Jr. and Mattias Ekström. All showed terrific speed on the dunes at different points during the race – including a win for Roma on Stage 4 on route to third overall. The Ford M-Sport foursome now switch their focus firmly onto the 2026 Dakar Rally (January 3-17).
« Happy to make it to the end of this one with no real issues. We managed to up our pace each day and now it’s onto Dakar 2026! » – Mitch Guthrie Jr.
Cristina Gutiérrez supported her Dacia team-mates Al-Attiyah and Loeb as they battled for big prizes. The Spaniard maintained her own impressive pace throughout all five desert stages to finish inside the Top 10 overall.
« It’s been a very intense week, taking advantage of every minute of the day to make the most of this opportunity to compete and put in the miles before the Dakar. » – Cristina Gutiérrez
Dakar legend Laia Sanz will take lots of encouragement away from Morocco after debuting her new Ebro Motorsport car. A string of solid stage results show that the former biker has a car capable of taking on the Empty Quarter Desert in Saudi Arabia.
The dream of a perfect two-wheeled W2RC season faded into a Saharan mirage this week. Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders had already wrapped up his RallyGP title before arriving in Morocco, thanks to winning the opening four rounds of the season. He narrowly missed out on making it five wins out of five at the season finale, finishing second to RallyGP winner Tosha Schareina.
« Unfortunately we didn’t get the clean sweep, but it’s still a dominant year. Now it’s the Dakar up next and I know what I need to do. I’ve got the best bike possible so it’s all on me to perform. » – Daniel Sanders
20-year-old Edgar Canet also picked up a World Championship trophy for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing as he secured this season’s Rally2 title. The Spaniard dominated his category all year – starting with a win at the Dakar – and now moves up to the elite RallyGP class in time for the upcoming Dakar.
« Winning the Rally2 race and the championship is the best way to say goodbye to this fantastic season. I’m super happy for the team, for KTM and to be the World Champion of Rally2. » – Edgar Canet
Another prize heading back to Mattighofen, Austria is the 2025 FIM W2RC Manufacturers’ title following a near impeccable season for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing. Adding plenty of points to the team’s tally throughout the year was Luciano Benavides. The Argentinian biker is fully focused on recovering from the injuries sustained during a crash in Morocco ahead of another Dakar.
Among the teams out to challenge KTM during the upcoming season – starting at the Dakar – are Honda, Hero and Sherco. Indian biker Harith Noah of Sherco TVS put in a solid ride on the dunes of Morocco this week to finish inside the Top 20 overall.
In the Challenger race it was Pau Navarro taking the overall win at Rallye du Maroc to finish his season in the best possible fashion. This maiden W2RC win backs up the Spaniard’s third place result at the Dakar and sees him finish as runner-up to Nicolás Cavigliasso in the championship leaderboard. The Taurus T3 Max driver must be considered a candidate for glory in the Challenger race when the next Dakar kicks off in 10 week’s time.
« P1 at Rallye du Maroc and second in the championship! We stuck to the strategy, maintaining a steady pace without breaking down or getting lost. » – Pau Navarro
Wins on Stages 3 and 4 for Dania Akeel cemented her place on the Challenger championship podium. It’s been a season to remember for the Saudi Arabian driver with a race win in Abu Dhabi and four stage wins in total. Akeel’s next race will be a fifth Dakar on home soil.
This week we witnessed Kevin Benavides making his W2RC debut on four wheels. The two-time Dakar bike race champion entered into the Challenger race and brought his Taurus T3 Max over the finish line in Erfoud. The Argentinian will have learned plenty about driving on the dunes and will carry on this education at the next Dakar.
Francisco ‘Chaleco’ López didn’t miss a beat on his return to W2RC competition in the SSV class. The three-time winner of the Dakar’s lightweight divisions fought back from a tricky start in Morocco to put himself in with a chance of victory. Eventually, the Chilean overtook all rivals in the SSV contest behind the wheel of his Can-Am to win the rally by a single second.
« We went from strength to strength and managed to finish in P1 » – Francisco Lopez
The 48th edition of the Dakar Rally will be your next chance to witness this convoy of world-class off-road talent in action. The two-week desert odyssey takes racers across dunes, mountains and dry riverbeds. The 2026 Dakar Rally starts and finishes in Yanbu, running from January 3-17. Innovations such as the brand-new Marathon-Refuge Stages are set to push the limits of a race that’s already world renowned for it’s physical, mental and mechanical toughness. Stay tuned to all Red Bull Desert Wings channels for 8,000km of racing adventure at the always gruelling Dakar Rally.
2025 World Rally-Raid Championship rankings
ULTIMATE – Top 5 : 1. L. MORAES (BRA) – TOYOTA – 164 points ; 2. N. AL-ATTIYAH (QAT) – DACIA – 153 ; 3. H. LATEGAN (ZAF) – TOYOTA – 141 ; 4. S. LOEB (FRA) – DACIA – 113 ; 5. S. QUINTERO (USA) – TOYOTA – 97…
BIKE RallyGP – Top 5 : 1. D. SANDERS (AUS) – KTM – 133 points ; 2. T. SCHAREINA (ESP) – HONDA – 91 ; 3. R. BRABEC (USA) – HONDA – 82 ; 4. L. BENAVIDES (ARG) – KTM – 69 ; 5. A. VAN BEVEREN (FRA) – HONDA – 61…
BIKE Rally2 – Top 5 : 1. E. CANET (ESP) – KTM – 113 points ; 2. M. DOCHERTY (ZAF) – KTM – 94 ; 3. T. EBSTER (AUT) – HERO – 80 ; 4. K. DABROWSKI (POL) – KTM – 71 ; 5. R. BARBOSA (CHI) – KTM – 35…
CHALLENGER – Top 5 : 1. N. CAVIGLIASSO (ARG) – TAURUS – 206 points ; 2. P. NAVARRO (ESP) – TAURUS – 180 ; 3. D. AKEEL (KSA) – TAURUS – 154 ; 4. G. GUERREIRO (PRT) – TAURUS – 113 ; 5. Y. SEAIDAN (SAU) – TAURUS – 99…
Final 2025 Rallye du Maroc results
ULTIMATE – Top 5 : 1. S. LOEB (FRA) – DACIA 15:11:40 ; 2. L. MORAES (BRA) – TOYOTA +05:43 ; 3. N. ROMA (ESP) – FORD +06:15 ; 4. J. FERREIRA (POR) – TOYOTA +06:19 ; 5. M. EKSTROM (SWE) – FORD +07:29…
BIKE – Top 5 : 1. T. SCHAREINA (ESP) – HONDA 15:51:34 ; 2. D. SANDERS (AUS) – KTM +03:12 ; 3. R. BRABEC (USA) – HONDA +09:37 ; 4. A. VAN BEVEREN (FRA) – HONDA +30:16 ; 5. E. CANET (ESP) – KTM +44:33…
CHALLENGER – Top 5 : 1. P. NAVARRO (ESP) – TAURUS 17:19:14 ; 2. N. CAVIGLIASSO (ARG) – TAURUS +00:29 ; 3. P. KLAASSEN (NED) – OT3 +15:08 ; 4. P. SPIERINGS (NED) – TAURUS +18:13 ; 5. P. GONCALVES (POR) – TAURUS +01:19:59…
SSV – Top 5 : 1. F. LOPEZ (CHI) – CAN-AM +17:41:41 ; 2. J. GONZALEZ FERIOLI (ARG) – CAN-AM +00:01 ; 3. H. MILLER (USA) – CAN-AM +02:59 ; 4. H. RODRIGUES (POR) – POLARIS +01:13:05 ; 5. K. CHANEY (USA) – CAN-AM +01:37:06…
QUOTES
Lucas Moraes: « What can I say? We’re World Champion! I’ve been working my whole life to be a World Champion one day. Thanks to the amazing Toyota team for all the belief and support they gave me, making me the driver that I now am. I also dedicate this win to Brazil. Tonight we’re going to party! »
Sébastien Loeb: « Victory at the Rallye du Maroc. Great week with the entire Dacia Sandriders team, and the World Navigator Champion title for Édouard Boulanger, as the cherry on top. All the lights are green for the Dakar Rally. »
Henk Lategan: « We overtook one of the Fords in the dunes on the long stage today. We had a decent run, some small issues but that’s normal in rally-raid. Unfortunately we broke a front driveshaft about 2km into the Power Stage. After that we just drove it to the finish. Overall, we gained a lot of experience here and we need to carry that into next year. »
Seth Quintero: « Stage 5 was really good for us. Andrew (Short) did an amazing job with the navigation, I’m really proud of him and excited to carry on working with him. We ended up winning the Power Stage and winning the overall stage today. »
Mitch Guthrie Jr.: « We’re in a good spot. Feeling comfortable in the car and with the team. Happy to make it to the end of this one with no real issues. We managed to up our pace each day and now it’s onto Dakar 2026! »
Cristina Gutiérrez: « It’s been a very intense week, taking advantage of every minute of the day to make the most of this opportunity to compete and put in the miles before the Dakar… Every day, one step up, looking for ways to improve. »
Daniel Sanders: « Unfortunately we didn’t get the clean sweep, but it’s still a dominant year. Now it’s the Dakar up next and I know what I need to do, I’ve just got to go there and do it. I’ve got the best bike possible so it’s all on me to perform. We’re putting 2025 behind us now and focusing on 2026. »
Edgar Canet: « Winning the Rally2 race and the championship is the best way to say goodbye to this fantastic season. I’m super happy for the team, for KTM and to be the World Champion of Rally2. I think more good things are going to come so I’m going to keep pushing myself to train hard for the Dakar. »
Harith Noah: « Always a good feeling and goal no.1 to reach the finish line. Things could have gone a little better but we did our best out there and are here now. Lot learned and lot to work on and dial in before heading for the big one in Saudi. »
Pau Navarro: « P1 at Rallye du Maroc and second in the world championship! Very happy with the work we’ve done with Jan (Rosa) and BBR Motorsport. We stuck to the strategy, maintaining a steady pace without breaking down or getting lost. »
Francisco López: « We won Rallye du Maroc with Alvaro León! We went from strength to strength and managed to finish in P1!! Thanks to my sponsors and supporters! Without them, nothing would be possible!!! »
Christine Fial,