João Ferreira (Toyota) beat the big names of the world’s cross-country elite in the longest stage of the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal and arrived in Badajoz with a 3m24s advantage over South African Saood Variawa (Toyota). On a historic day for Portuguese drivers, Gonçalo Guerreiro (Challenger) and João Dias (SSV) won the stage in their respective categories. Australian Daniel Sanders (KTM) continues to dominate on the bikes.
The first stage had already been demanding, but the second presented even greater difficulties to the competitors, who faced a long and challenging course – it was a typical Dakar day, only in Europe, which surprised many drivers.
In the cars, Toyota continues to dominate, with three cars ahead of Ford. The best Dacia driver is Sébastien Loeb (7th).
Portuguese João Ferreira (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo) set an impressive pace from the opening kilometers. At km 160, he was leading with a 7-second gap over Henk Lategan and, by km 221, his advantage over Lucas Moraes (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo) had grown to 2m28s. The Brazilian driver lost some time with a puncture at the start of the stage.
The all-out attack paid off with a stage win, finishing 1m03s ahead of Carlos Sainz. After leaving Grândola in third (+1m52s), the young driver from Leiria reached Badajoz in the overall lead of the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal, with a 3m24s advantage over his teammate. “It was a very long and tough day. We had some difficulty entering Spain and finding a good rhythm. Even so, we gained time on our rivals and I’m very satisfied with our performance,” explained the driver, who claimed his first-ever stage win in the top category of the World Rally-Raid Championship.
South African Saood Variawa ran consistently among the fastest and climbed to second overall. “The stage was very long and twisty, especially in the mountainous area. Towards the end, I had to slow down because of the tires, but the result is good and I’m optimistic about what’s ahead,” he said.
The longest stage was also extremely punishing. Nasser Al Attiyah pushed hard in an attempt to recover the time lost with three penalties imposed by the organizers, but his effort came undone around km 200 due to a mechanical issue that cost him 8 minutes. “A long stage, with very slippery terrain, that didn’t go well for us due to several problems. We have three days to recover,” said the three-time world champion.
Frenchman Sébastien Loeb lost more than 14 minutes changing a suspension arm on his Dacia Sandrider, a job assisted by teammate Cristina Gutiérrez. “Tough day, we lost a lot of time,” commented the Frenchman. 2025 Dakar winner Yazeed Al Rajhi (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo) rolled and retired, while Juan Cruz Yacopini (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo) went off the road.
The toughness of the rally also took its toll in the Challenger category. Mattias Ekström (Can-Am XRS), who was leading, retired with mechanical problems. Gonçalo Guerreiro (Taurus Evo Max) won the stage and took command of the category, ahead of the drivers fighting for the world title. “A hard day, very demanding on the tires. I had to manage a lot because the terrain was very abrasive. I lost time early on in the dust of another car, but after that, I had a clean stage,” he said.
It was also a positive day for João Dias (Polaris RZR), who won the stage and leads the SSV category. Alexandre Pinto (Polaris RZR) was consistently among the fastest and gained a solid advantage over Enrico Gaspari in the fight for the world title.
The second stage was extremely tough and difficult for the bike riders, who finished with heavily worn tires. KTM remains in front, but Honda continues to be a threat.
Daniel Sanders (KTM 450 Rally) and Tosha Schareina (Honda CRF 450 Rally) battled for the stage win right down to the final kilometer, with Sanders quickest by just 4s — after 429 km against the clock! “Very long day. The last 60 km in Spain were really slippery. The course was very technical and great fun. It’s important to have a good advantage for tomorrow, which will be another tough day,” said the stage winner. Tosha Schareina (Honda CRF 450 Rally) went flat out, but still lost 25s to the overall leader.
Ricky Brabec is third overall. “Very long stage, with a very different route in Spain. The final part was tough because I was out of tires and had to slow down,” explained the Honda rider.
Excellent performance from Portuguese Bruno Santos (Husqvarna FR450 Rally), who finished 7th on the longest stage and climbed to second in the Rally2 category, beating many riders on the more powerful RallyGP bikes. “I started well and was always on the attack. The main difficulty was catching dust from another rider, which cost me time, especially in the slower sections and between trees,” he said. Gonçalo Amaral (Honda CRF 450) is second in the Rally3 category (16th overall).
Two riders from the top 4 were forced to retire. World Rally-Raid champion Ross Branch (Hero 450 Rally) was the first to abandon after a spectacular crash, and Adrien Van Beveren (Honda CRF 450 Rally) also retired following a violent fall that resulted in a shoulder injury. Tobias Ebster (Hero 450 Rally) withdrew voluntarily.
Classification after Stage 2 – Cars
1st João Ferreira (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo), 5h.35,04 (1st Portuguese)
2nd Saood Variawa (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo), +3m.24
3rd Lucas Moraes (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo), +3m.46
4th Carlos Sainz (Ford Raptor T1+), +5m.20
5th Henk Lategan (Toyota Hilux T1+ Evo), +5m.27
Classification after Stage 2 – Bikes
1st Daniel Sanders (KTM 450 Rally), 5h.55,35
2nd Tosha Schareina (Honda CRF 450 Rally), +1m.36
3rd Ricky Brabec (Honda CRF 450 Rally), +7m.18
4th Lorenzo Santolino (Sherco 450 SEF Rally), +15m.25
5th Edgar Canet (KTM 450 Rally), +10m.39 (1st Rally2)
6th Bruno Santos (Husqvarna FR450 Rally), +15m.37 (1st Portuguese)
The third stage starts and finishes in Badajoz, covering 511 km. Riders and drivers face a spectacular 308 km selective section, very fast with good terrain, and featuring sandy stretches in true rally-raid style. At the end of the day, the public can visit the Badajoz bivouac between 6 PM and 11 PM (Spanish time).
Access link to follow Stage 3 of the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal:
https://rallyraidportugal.com/content.aspx?menuid=1344
Schedule
September 26 – Stage 3 Badajoz-Badajoz (308 km)
06:00 – Start of 1st Bike from the Badajoz Fairgrounds
08:10 – Start of 1st Car from the Badajoz Fairgrounds
14:35 – Arrival of 1st Bike at the Badajoz Fairgrounds (estimated)
16:30 – Arrival of 1st Car at the Badajoz Fairgrounds (estimated)
19:00 – W2RC Medal Ceremony at the Badajoz Fairgrounds
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