Sanders sees off navigation dramas
Despite running into some navigation worries, Daniel Sanders stayed calm to increase his grip on the 2025 Dakar Rally.
Sanders has led the bikes class throughout the entire rally and a third place in Stage 9 sees the Australian strengthen his position.
The KTM rider enjoys a 14m34s advantage over Honda river Tosha Schareina, while his teammate Adrien van Beveren is 20m adrift.
Stage 9 went to fourth placed Luciano Benavides as he held off van Beveren by 1m54s, while Sanders pipped Ricky Brabec by 35s to snare third.
Sanders said he was happy to finish so high up after an eventful 589km journey from Riyadh to Haradah.
“I had a really good start until the first neutralisation,” the Aussie said.
“After that, we went into a similar area from other years.
“I couldn’t see the tracks properly because it was really white dirt.
“It was really hard to navigate and I was just making sure I was on the right spots.
Daniel Sanders riding his KTM on what appears to be the edge of the world. Image: DPPI / Red Bull Content Pool
“I only got lost a couple of times… and lost a little bit of time, it’s a little bit disappointing.
“I saw Tosha (Schareina) had a crash at the check point, he said he was okay.
“Any crash in a rally is a big one, but hopefully he’s okay.
“It’s just important for me to stay focused on what I’m doing… I lost a bit of time today.
“I could have pushed and made some more, but it’s not too bad.”
With both Toby Price and Andrew Houlihan both unfortunately withdrawing the in the last week, the only other Australian taking on Dakar alongside “Chucky” is Toby Hederics.
And he is flying, finishing Stage 9 a strong 13th, just 18m22s off the pace.
This saw the Bas World KTM Racing Team rider rocket into the top 20 as he sits 19th overall.
Whilst Sanders has controlled the bikes category, there has been a change in the cars.
Toyota’s Jenk Lategan had led since Stage 2, but a puncture saw him fall 7m behind new leader Yazeed Al-Rajhi.
In the fight for stage honours, Nasser Al-Attiyah bounced back from a tough Monday and flew home to victory.
Al-Attiyah is fourth, just 31s away from Mattias Ekstrom.
There are only three stages left in the 2025 Dakar Rally with the biggest next, a 640km trek from Haradh to Shubaytah.
Main image: Flavien Duhamel / Red Bull Content Pool
2025 Dakar Rally Stage 9 results
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