SA-built Toyota Gazoo Hiluxes take spectacular Dakar Rally 1-2

By: Motorsport Media

Saudi home hero Yazeed Al-Rajhi and Timo Gottschalk’s Toyota Hilux sailed through Friday’s short final dune stage to win the Dakar 2025 Car race by just under four minutes from South Africans Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings’ Toyota Gazoo Hilux.

Another South African, Michael Docherty once again beat the Rally GP machines to take a second Bike win Friday, while Aussie Daniel Sanders incredibly led the two wheeler race from start to finish to claim KTM’s 20th victory.

Second on Friday, Swedes Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist’s Ford Raptor likewise held day winners Qatari 5-time Dakar winner Nasser Al-Attiyah and Frenchman Edouard Boulanger in their Dacia Sandrider off for third overall and best of the new Dakar teams this year.

US youngster Mitch Guthrie and Kellon Walch followed in another Ford Raptor, while French crew Mathieu Serradori and Loic Minaudier were a happy sixth in their South African Factory Century CR7. Argentine Juan Cruz Yacopini and Daniel Oliveras’ Hilux, Portuguese Mini crew Joao Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro, American Gazoo Hilux duo Seth Quintero and Dennis Zenz and South Africans Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer’s Century CR7 closed off the top ten.

Heartbreak for SA's Lategan

While it was a huge win for home hero Al-Rajhi, it was a heartbreaking result for Lategan and Cummings, whose losing deficit was considerably less than the time they lost after Dakar officials nullified a sector of a stage due to a wrong route instruction. Dakar 2025 was however a huge success for South African Toyota Hilux teams with eight stage wins and four cars in the top ten.

Of other South African interest, Saood Variawa and Frenchman Francois Cazalet’s Gazoo Hilux ended 15th, while Seychellois lass Aliyyah Koloc and Sebastien Delaunay were 23rd and best of the four amateur SA-built Red-Lined REVO+ entries, all of which finished the race after Kolok starred to eighth on Tuesday.

Another South African built car worthy of mention was German Daniel Schröder and South African Henry Köhne’s WCT Amarok built a fraction of the cost of its factory rivals. The WCT car popped up in the top ten on several occasions, achieving a fine fourth on Tuesday.

South African champions Lategan and Cummings hit the ground running to win the Prologue, before teammates Quintero and Zenz took the first stage. Mini men, Lithuanian Rokas Baciuska and Oriol Mena were fastest on the Chrono 48 third stage, before Variawa and Frenchman Cazalet’s Toyota took stage 3. Al-Rajhi and Gottschalk won Stage 4 and Quintero and Zenz stage 5, before French Mini crew Guillaume De Mévius and Mathieu Baumel won stage 6 as Lategan led after the first week.

Yet another South African-built Toyota Hilux, Brazilian Gazoo crew Lucas Moraes and Armand Monleon Gazoo Hilux, started week 2 with a win before Lategan and Cummings won stage 11 on Monday, and then Al Attiyah and Boulanger took Dacia’s maiden stage win on Tuesday. Spaniards Nani Roma and Alex Haro gave the new Ford Raptor its first win on Wednesday, before teammates Ekström and Emil Bergkvist took Thursday’s win.

Ten different crews won the twelve Dakar stages with only Lategan and Attiyah taking more than one stage. Toyota took an incredible eight stage wins through the race. In a rally of attrition, FIA scruitineers were criticised for perhaps unnecessarily sending top crews Sébastien Loeb and Fabian Lurquin’s Dacia Sandrider, Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz Ford Raptor and Laia Sanz and Maurizio’s Gerini Century, among others home. Their cars were allowed to race home after rolling, only to be excluded after draconian overnight inspections.

There was no way that South Africans Guy Botterill and Dennis Murphy’s Gazoo Hilux, or Guerlain Chicherit and Alex Winocq’s Mini could continue after both rolled heavily, however. Toyota Gazoo racing said goodbye to South African Dakar legend Giniel de Villiers after German Dirk von Zitzewitz’s neck pain caused the Hilux crew to call it quits, among a long list of retirements from a truly gruelling Dakar 2025.

On two wheels: SA's Docherty scores stage win

On two wheels, South African Michael Docherty sensationally scored his second stage win of 2025 aboard his Rally 2 BAS World KTM on Friday. Australian Daniel Sanders meantime cruised home to sixth on the stage to score KTM’s 20th Dakar win and certainly brighten a tough patch for the beleaguered Austrian bike maker.

Spaniard Tosha Schareina ended eight minutes behind the KTM man and ahead of French Honda teammate Adrien van Beveren, Argentine Luciano Benavides’ KTM and American Honda duo Skyler Howes and Ricky Brabec.

Docherty made up a place to 14th overall following his earlier troubles as he helped KTM to a record nine stage wins. Amateur rookie compatriots, Dwain Barnard finished 48th on his Nomade Racing KTM, and Willem Avenant 82nd on his HT Husqvarna.

Botswana’s 2024 World Rally Raid Moto Champion Ross Branch crashed his Hero MotoSports 450 Rally out within minutes of South African 2024 World Rally 2 Champion Bradley Cox exiting after falling from his BAS World KTM 450 on Sunday, while Aaron Mare’s Husqvarna also crashed out later in week 2.

Winner Sanders started Dakar 2025 with three wins on the trot in the Prologue and the first two stages. Sanders amazingly went on to lead the entire 5,000km race from start to finish. Spain’s Lorenzo Santolino took Stage 3 on his Sherco before Sanders was back on top the following day. Honda men van Beveren and Brabec then closed the first week off on top. Sanders laid the gauntlet back down with another win after the rest day before KTM teammate Benavides took the next two stages. Then Docherty took his historic day victory on his Rally 2 machine on Wednesday, Schareina won Thursday and Docherty was on top again on Friday’s final stage.

In the other classes, Americans Brock Heger and Max Eddy dominated the T3 side-by-side race in their Sebastien Loeb Racing RZR. SA girls, Stellenbosch lass, Puck Klaassen and Charan Moore GRally and Taye Perry reading notes for Corbin Leaverton and Red Bull Taurus T3 Max starred, but both had their fair share of issues en route. Argentine duo Nicolás Cavigliasso and Valentina Pertegarini‘s Taurus took a compelling T4 Challenger victory, and Martin Macik, David Svanda and Frantisek Tomasek won the Trucks by over two hours aboard an MM.

Article by: Motorsport Media