The Dakar Rally convoy is heading back to the dunes of the Sahara Desert for this season’s final showdown. The 2025 World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) concludes with the 26th running of Rallye du Maroc. A prologue under the shadow of the mighty Atlas Mountains on Sunday, October 12 will be followed by 1,500km of timed desert racing spread over five stages. The complete list of this year’s W2RC winners will finally be revealed when the chequered flag flies on Friday, October 17 in the oasis town of Erfoud.
A champion is yet to be crowned in the heavyweight clash that has been raging in the Ultimate car division this season. Dacia’s Nasser Al-Attiyah leads the championship on 140 points, but has two Toyota rivals within 10 points of his total. With 30 championship points available for a race win – plus additional stage win bonus points on offer – it’s clear that this one is going right down to the wire.
« I hope Morocco can be good for us, I have a lot of experience from doing the rally many times. I will do my best to win and take the title. » – Nasser Al-Attiyah
Out to stop Al-Attiyah getting his hands on a fourth consecutive W2RC Ultimate Drivers’ title are a pair of Toyota Gazoo Racing pilots. Henk Lategan – the most recent recruit to the Red Bull Desert Wings squad – is just nine points behind his Qatari rival going into the season finale.
« It’s my first time ever in Morocco and that’s what rally is all about, discovering new scenery and new roads. Going slow isn’t an option this week. » – Henk Lategan
Lucas Moraes – winner of the championship’s penultimate round in Portugal – is a mere 10 points behind Al-Attiyah. When the dust settles in Morocco next Friday there can only be one overall champion!
« We arrive here after a win in Portugal. Now we’re ready for an interesting fight and hopefully we can come out on top. » – Lucas Moraes
Toyota Gazoo Racing have already wrapped up their fourth W2RC Manufacturers’ title thanks to impressive results all season from drivers Lategan, Moraes and Seth Quintero. 23-year-old Quintero is chasing a maiden W2RC Ultimate class win in North Africa ahead of his sixth trip to the Dakar.
« My first W2RC win came at this race in the Challenger class. It’s good to be back somewhere we’ve already raced and tested a lot. » – Seth Quintero
Al-Attiyah’s Dacia team-mates Sébastien Loeb and Cristina Gutiérrez are ready to help bring the championship home to their corner of the bivouac. Loeb has recorded podium finishes in South Africa and Portugal this season while Cristina is looking to end the year on a high.
« We will work together as a team to try to help give Nasser the title. I can’t wait for the race and to enjoy it with the team. » – Cristina Gutiérrez
Determined to have their say at Rallye du Maroc are the four race crews entered by Ford M-Sport. Leading the charge in his Ford Raptor T1+ will be four-time Dakar winner Carlos Sainz.
« Things will be very tight at this rally, but I’m convinced we’re on the right track. Morocco will be a good and necessary test run ahead of the Dakar. » – Carlos Sainz
Mattias Ekström parked his Raptor T1+ on the podium at its Dakar debut earlier in the year. Ekström is back behind the wheel of his Ford in Morocco along with team-mates Mitch Guthrie Jr. and Nani Roma.
« We’ll be racing with the intention of achieving a good result, but without forgetting that the main objective is to do a real test for the Dakar. » – Nani Roma
Also in the Ultimate class we’ll witness the debut of the brand-new car from EBRO Motorsport. At the steering wheel will be one of the Dakar Rally’s biggest legends as Laia Sanz prepares herself for another trip back to Saudi Arabia next January.
« Joining a project like EBRO is a challenge and an opportunity that motivates me enormously. I’m looking forward to getting to work and getting behind the wheel of the car. » – Laia Sanz
This Rallye du Maroc also brings a fresh start for two-time Dakar bike race winner Kevin Benavides. Now retired from racing motorbikes, the Argentinian has switched to four wheels. The former KTM biker will take on the Saharan dunes in a Taurus T3 Max in the Challenger class as part of Team BBR Motorsport in Morocco.
« It’s very exciting to be making my official debut as a driver in the W2RC. I feel like I arrived to Morocco as a biker, but I will leave as a driver. » – Kevin Benavides
Meanwhile, the podium places are still to be decided in the W2RC Challenger class rankings. 2025 Dakar winner Nicolás Cavigliasso tops the leaderboard on 168 points, but has second placed Pau Navarro (139 points) and Dania Akeel in third (126 points) looking to improve their positions. Akeel has already made history this season by becoming the first female to drive to victory at a W2RC race with her win at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.
« I’m looking forward to this last round of the W2RC. It’ll be fun to be back in the desert after the different terrain we’ve had at the last two events. » – Dania Akeel
In the SSV category it’s a return to W2RC competition for Francisco ‘Chaleco’ López. The Can-Am Factory Team driver is a three-time winner of the Dakar’s lightweight divisions and this latest trip to Morocco is the perfect opportunity for a tune-up before another shot at glory.
The 2025 W2RC champion in the Bike category has already been revealed, it’s Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders. The Australian’s record-breaking season – four wins out of four so far – has seen him wrap up the title with one race to spare. But don’t expect Sanders to ease up on the gas, he wants to make it a Grand Slam year!
« We’ve had a perfect season so far and now the goal is to win here in Morocco. Riding here is the closest thing you’re going to get to the Dakar. » – Daniel Sanders
Sanders arrives in Morocco with his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team-mates Luciano Benavides and Edgar Canet. Luciano can make it a 1-2 result for the team in the RallyGP rankings while Canet can seal overall victory in the Rally2 class.
« We’ve been here for two weeks of testing and training so we know what’s coming. I’m leading Rally2 and I need to do a good job to take this title. » – Edgar Canet
Among the other bikers using this trip to Morocco as a chance to perfect their set-up ahead of the next Dakar is Harith Noah. The Sherco TVS biker won the Rally2 race at the 2024 Dakar and is hungry for even more honours at the world’s toughest rally.
With an ultra-competitive field stacked with world-class desert racing talent across all categories it’s obvious that we’re in for something special over the next week. The racing in Morocco gets underway with a Prologue Stage measuring 19km on the outskirts of Fes on Sunday, October 12. Then comes five Saharan stages, including a trip to the Rekkam Plateau, with a total racing distance of 1,478km. The rally ends on Friday, October 17 with a 33km Power Selective Section to finish off the season.
2025 World Rally-Raid Championship Standings
ULTIMATE – Top 5 : 1. N. Al-Attiyah (QAT) – Dacia – 140 points ; 2. H. Lategan (ZAF) – Toyota – 131 ; 3. L. Moraes (BRA) – Toyota – 130 ; 4. S. Quintero (USA) – Toyota – 84 ; 5. Y. Al-Rajhi (SAU) – Toyota – 77…
CHALLENGER – Top 5 : 1. N. Cavigliasso (ARG) – Taurus – 168 points ; 2. P. Navarro (ESP) – Taurus – 139 ; 3. D. Akeel (KSA) – Taurus – 126 ; 4. G. Guerreiro (PRT) – TAURUS – 113 ; 5. Y. Seaidean (SAU) – Taurus – 76…
BIKE RallyGP – Top 5 : 1. D. Sanders (AUS) – KTM – 113 points ; 2. L. Benavides (ARG) – KTM – 69 ; 3. T. Schareina (ESP) – Honda – 66 ; 4. R. Brabec (USA) – Honda – 66 ; 5. A. Van Beveren (FRA) – Honda – 48…
BIKE Rally2 – Top 5 : 1. E. Canet (ESP) – KTM – 88 points ; 2. M. Docherty (ZAF) – KTM – 74 ; 3. T. Ebster (AUT) – Hero – 67 ; 4. Dabrowski (POL) – KTM – 55 ; 5. R. Barbosa (CHI) – KTM – 26…
QUOTES
Nasser Al-Attiyah: « Last year was very close but we won the championship. I will work very hard and the team will work very hard to achieve this again. The good thing is between all of us, there is a good spirit, and we can help each other as crews. I hope Morocco can be good for us, I have a lot of experience from doing the rally many times. I will do my best to win and take the title. »
Henk Lategan: « It’s my first time ever in Morocco and that’s what rally is all about, discovering new scenery and new roads. The close fight in the championship adds extra pressure, but we’ll just have to perform as we’ve been doing all year. We know what the car and the team can do so all that’s left is to learn this new terrain quickly. Going slow isn’t an option this week. »
Lucas Moraes: « We’re only 10 points behind in the championship and we arrive here after a win in Portugal. We won a stage here last year and came close to the podium. Now we’re ready for an interesting fight and hopefully we can come out on top. »
Seth Quintero: « My first ever rally-raid win came at this race in the Challenger class. It feels good to be back somewhere familiar, a place when we’ve already raced and tested a lot. I’m going for the win, but I’ve also got two team-mates fighting for the championship so if they need my help then I’ll play that role. »
Sébastien Loeb: « We did a good rally in Portugal, the feeling with the car was really good. We didn’t have any big issues so that’s looking good for the last round of the season. Morocco will be another kind of rally, my second rally with Édouard but with more navigation so we will need to be concentrated and continue to work well. »
Cristina Gutiérrez: « The expectations are good for Morocco. After Portugal, coming back again in the competition was very nice because we are used to the car again and Morocco is very important for the season. It’s the last race of the championship and we will work together as a team to try to help give Nasser the title. I can’t wait for the race and to enjoy it with the team. »
Carlos Sainz: « The new Raptor T1+ is going well. The work on weight distribution throughout the car is very important and we’ve also made progress in almost every area. Things will be very tight at this rally, but I’m convinced we’re on the right track. Morocco will be a good and necessary test run ahead of the Dakar. »
Nani Roma: « I’m really looking forward to competing with the car we’ll be using in the Dakar. We’ll be up against all the competition next January, and as always, we’ll be racing with the intention of achieving a good result, but without forgetting that the main objective is to do a real test for the Dakar. »
Laia Sanz: « Joining a project like EBRO is a challenge and an opportunity that motivates me enormously. We share the same passion for competition and the goal of building a solid and successful project. I’m looking forward to getting to work and getting behind the wheel of the car. »
Kevin Benavides: « It’s very exciting to be making my official debut as a driver in the W2RC. I arrived early in Morocco to prepare for this rally with the team. I raced the Baja Morocco at the beginning of the month and that was an important part of my training. I feel like I arrived to Morocco as a biker, but I will leave as a driver. »
Dania Akeel: « I’m really looking forward to this last round of the W2RC. It’ll be fun to be back in the desert after the different types of terrain we’ve had at the last two events. Now it’s time to define our position in the Top 3 of the championship. I’ve been closing points all year since picking up the win in Abu Dhabi. »
Daniel Sanders: « We’ve had a perfect season so far and now the ultimate goal is to win here in Morocco. The championship is won, but the pressure is on to keep this winning streak alive. We’re ready to go racing again. Riding here in Morocco is the closest thing you’re going to get to racing the Dakar. »
Luciano Benavides: « This is the most important race on the calendar after the Dakar. It’s been a long month with rallies in Portugal and Morocco back-to-back. I’ve done many hours of testing and riding so I’m feeling good to get out there and race. I’ve been on the podium here three years in a row so hopefully I can do that again. »
Edgar Canet: « We’ve been in Morocco for two weeks of testing and training so we know what’s coming. I’m leading the Rally2 category and I need to do a good job to take this title. It’s time to focus and concentrate on having a good race. »
Christine Fial,