The 2026 Rally-Raid Portugal roared into life beginning with a brief but decisive prologue for the riders. Covering just 3.4 kilometres against the clock, the stint at Grândola would still play an important role deciding which riders would earn the advantage of choosing their starting positions for stage one.
Setting off shortly after lunchtime at two-minute intervals, the 2024 Rally-Raid Portugal winner Tosha Schareina made light work of the sandy terrain, finishing just a second behind the fastest time of 3’01” set by prologue winner Daniel Sanders.
Ricky Brabec, returning to his Honda CRF450 RALLY for the first time since the Dakar Rally in January, navigated the slippery conditions, finishing just two seconds behind his teammate.
Adrien Van Beveren described the prologue as “intense,” and a couple of sideways moments left him five seconds off the top time. Skyler Howes completed the team’s effort in eighth place, 12 seconds back, with a few cornering mistakes costing him a higher position.
With the opening kilometres complete, focus now shifts to the first full day of competition: 180 km of timed action and a 46 km transfer across the rolling plains of Alentejo. Riders will face demanding sandy terrain alongside unpredictable local weather, before regrouping near the Grândola bivouac for a final twist – a short but decisive 3 km sandy special stage to close out the day.
Ruben Faria – General Manager : « It was a good prologue for us. Tosha had the best result in second, with Ricky finishing just behind him. Adrien was in fifth and Skyler, eighth. It was a difficult prologue, quite technical, it was slippery and the sand was dry, so made it difficult for grip. But they enjoyed it and they are happy. Tosha and Ricky are in a good position for tomorrow, Adrien and Skyler, most likely will have to start near the front, but it’s not a big problem. They have announced rain for tomorrow and I think the first stage will be mostly sand. I think they can all do a good stage tomorrow, but we need to wait to see what the weather will do. »
Ricky Brabec #9 – Prologue: 3rd : « It was good, somewhat fast, really slick in areas, slicker than I was predicting especially with the conditions and the weather out here, I was thinking it to be a little more wet. Overall, it was cool. Not a lot of people might know this but I haven’t really ridden a motorcycle since Dakar, so to go the speed and to push like we did today, it felt cool, but the race is not determined by the prologue so I’m looking forward to the next five days. The wind is coming, the clouds are coming, let’s hope the weather is nice to us. First off, the roads here are a little bit scary, now with the rain and the clouds coming in, it’s going to be muddy and scary, so it’s going to be unpredictable this week. Let’s just try to stay on two wheels and put the skis out when we need to and make it to the finish line. »
Skyler Howes #10 – Prologue: 8th : « It was a super short prologue and I messed up a couple of corners out there, but I’m happy to get through in one piece and feeling more or less good. I had a couple of little mess ups in the corners which it is what it is. We have a couple of thousand more kilometres to ride through Portugal, the weather is starting to roll through now so that’s going to make it pretty fun and interesting. I’m excited to hopefully see some new tracks out there and see what challenges this race has to give us. »
Adrien Van Beveren #42 – Prologue: 5th : « It was like a real sprint today. We had 3km to ride but it was really really intense. It was kind of sandy, but super dry and a hard base, so it was difficult to find a good flow. But I guess it was the same for everyone so I just gave it my best, I did a couple of big mistakes sideways and so it wasn’t so efficient, but overall we are happy to start the rally here in Portugal and I can’t wait for tomorrow. »
Tosha Schareina #68 – Prologue: 2nd : « The prologue was pretty intense, just 3km on the sand. I pushed a lot to secure second place and finish with just a one second gap off the win. I know that the race starts tomorrow so I will have to be focused. The conditions are perfect for now, but we are waiting for the rain, so we will have to see. We are prepared for the battle. »
Rally GP Results – Prologue
1. Sanders Daniel (AUS) – Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team, 3:01.2
2. Schareina Tosha (SPA) – Monster Energy Honda HRC, + 00:01
3. Brabec Ricky (USA) – Monster Energy Honda HRC, + 00:03
4. Canet Edgar (SPA) – Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team, + 00:03
5. Van Beveren Adrien (FRA) – Monster Energy Honda HRC, + 00:05
6. Evan Branch Ross (BWA) – Hero Motorsports Team Rally, + 00:08
7. Benavides Luciano (ARG) – Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team, + 00:12
8. Howes Skyler (USA) – Monster Energy Honda HRC, + 00:12
9. Cornejo Florimo José Ignacio (CHI) – Hero Motorsports Team Rally, + 00:20