ℹ️ Stage info ℹ️

Stage 6

Al Ula → Riyadh

The day’s route unfolds primarily in the Qassim region, a popular gathering place for Saudi off-road enthusiasts. The sand dunes stretch as far as the eye can see, sometimes separated by a valley, where we continue to drive on sand throughout the special stage.

Once the stopwatch stops, a long liaison section lies ahead to reach the capital and enjoy the rest day. Time to take stock.

📝 Smiles all around after highly successful sixth Dakar Rally stage; Loprais wins, Zala takes P2! 📝

RIYADH – After the grueling marathon stage, Team De Rooy FPT walked through the bivouac in Riyadh on Friday, all smiles. The sixth stage of the Dakar Rally was about as good as it gets for the Son-based squad: Ales Loprais claimed his first stage win in the truck category, with Vaidotas right behind him in second. Throw in a tough day for rival Martin Macik, and suddenly the standings looked a whole lot rosier.

During the 915-kilometer stage from Hail to Riyadh, Loprais gained an impressive 46 minutes and 39 seconds on Macik. In the overall truck standings, the Czech now sits third, just 11 minutes and 46 seconds behind countryman Macik, who slipped to second. Zala is fourth. The gap between the two De Rooy teammates? A mere 9 (!) seconds.

📝 #602 Instatrade Loprais Team de Rooy FPT 📝

The battle ahead

The sixth stage was the last before the rest day. Come Sunday, Loprais and Zala will need to claw back more than 46 minutes on new overall leader Mitchel van den Brink. Loprais is ready for the challenge.

Ales Loprais

Jiri Stross

David Kripal

“Today was a small victory,” he said. “The Red Dragon (his truck) flew beautifully. When the truck works well, the crew works well too. And the atmosphere was amazing. We can finally get a good night’s sleep tonight, and that’s what matters most.”

“We’ve got a rest day ahead of us. We’re going to work hard, give the Red Dragon all our love, and go for the impossible. We’re going all in. We believe in miracles. Dakar goes on, and we’ll give it our best.”

📝 #604 Nørdis Team de Rooy FPT 📝

Monster stage

Zala was all smiles looking back on Friday’s monster stage—the first real encounter with the dunes. “It was nice to be back in the sand after all those rocks and bumps in the last few stages. A welcome change. We all missed this sand,” he said.

Vaidotas Žala

Paulo Fiuza

Max van Grol

“This was the first stage we truly enjoyed. We started fourth and always had a few trucks in our sights. It felt like a proper hunt.”

“At one point we caught up to Macik and Loprais. But Loprais fought back and pulled away. In the second part of the stage we had to ease off. But we’re still very much in the fight. We’re glad tomorrow is a rest day. This first week was brutal!”

Results Stage 4

Al Ula → Riyadh

📷 Photos of the day 📷

🎥 Videos of the day 🎥