The Ktm rider won the 2026 edition. And he retraces the incredible comeback that allowed him to win the most famous Rally Raid by just 2 seconds
When he thinks back to the Dakar 2026, Luciano Benavides he appears visibly excited. He smiles, takes his time, as if he can’t find the right words to describe his sensations. Two weeks have passed since the incredible epilogue in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, when the Argentine KTM rider won the most famous Rally Raid with a crazy comeback over Ricky Brabec. The mark of the triumph is all in those two seconds which sealed Benavides’ success. The Argentine retraced the stages of the ride in a meeting open to the media, among whom he was also present La Gazzetta dello Sport: “It was a crazy Dakar, I still can’t understand what has happened in the last few weeks.”
tenacious
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There were several doubts about Benavides: “This year everything went in the best possible way, even if my physical condition was a question mark at the start of the race.” The Argentine injured his left knee during the Morocco Rally in October 2025. Luciano continues: “I think everything can be summed up like this: never stop believing, anything can happen.” An attitude that can be seen in the Argentine’s race conduct: “I never changed my approach, even when Edgar Canet dropped out of the contenders for the final victory after the first Marathon and Daniel Sanders got injured. I knew I was the last hope for Ktm in the three final stages, but I felt different compared to previous editions. I just thought about giving my best. I focused on myself. The team and I were one. Maybe one or two years ago it wouldn’t have been the same.”
the turning points
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Benavides retraces the Dakar and identifies some crucial phases: “The stage 8 had significant importance. In fact, I led the way in the longest section between dunes, rocks and gorges in the desert, but I managed to gain all the bonuses. I made the right decisions quickly. I think it was my best day in the Dakar”. A stage that I ended as a winner and perhaps with important effects: “That success probably influenced my rivals from a psychological point of view”. Then the story focuses on the stage 11. Rival Brabec had purposely handed over the lead in the general classification to Luciano to take advantage of his references the following day: “Everything was going well, but, as I reached the refueling point, the Honda riders asked if I had gotten lost in the desert. Perhaps Brabec thought that I had braked on purpose, as he had done on that occasion. He was hiding behind bushes and trees. Everyone adopts their favorite tactic and Brabec is a champion.” Indeed, the rival’s strategy seemed to have put Benavides himself in crisis, 3’20” distant on the eve of the last stage: “Seeing the gap from Ricky, in the last 10 kilometers of the stage 12 I thought it was over. But based on some signs, I was convinced that this would be my Dakar. No matter what, something was going to happen.” A correct hunch.
the ending
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The last stage remained, number 13. Luciano remembers: “I had spoken with Pit Beirer (Ktm motorsport manager, ed) the night before, telling him, “I don’t know why, but I feel like I can do it. I’m going to push from start to finish.” Then came the support of a special person, his brother Kevin, former winner of the Dakar: “He made me listen to Argentine music to motivate me. Then he said: «Don’t stop fighting, keep believing». I pushed and chaos happened five kilometers from the finish line. I think I made the most difficult decision of my life. I followed my own trajectory rather than the one traced by Brabec. And it was the right choice.” Thus, after 13 stages and 7,906 km in total, only 2 seconds made the difference. The smallest margin ever in the Dakar moto: “It was an incredible ending, worthy of a film or the final episode of a Netflix series.”
ambitions
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After all, Luciano had been dreaming of this moment for some time: “I had been chasing victory for nine years. It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders”. Then he recalls: “When the Dakar passed to Salta, my city, in 2013, I watched the race, close to home. At that moment it was impossible to imagine that I would win this competition. I saw Marc Coma in front of everyone and I thought: «This race is really very special». He caught my attention, I started following him, even though I was practicing enduro at the time. For me and Kevin to be the first brothers to win the Dakar is something unreal.” And the KTM rider has other dreams in his drawer: “I would like to win the World Championship again. I already succeeded in 2023. I would like to do it in the year in which I won the Dakar. It won’t be easy because I injured my left knee and I will definitely have to have surgery. First, however, I intend to compete in Portugal and Argentina. Then I will undergo the surgery because I will have a good margin of time to be ready for the round in Morocco.” The king of the Dakar is still hungry for success.
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