Red Bull KTM’s Daniel Sanders won the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal and the 2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship with a fourth consecutive victory. Sanders clinched the title with one round, the fifth, still left on the World Rally-Raid Championship schedule.
Photos by Edo Bauer
After a four-month break since the previous round on the Rally-Raid calendar, Sanders immediately threw down the gauntlet on the short but intense Prologue, where he beat teammate Edgar Canet, who is competing in the Rally2 class (for those who don’t qualify for RallyGP points but compete for a World Cup title), by two seconds.
Heading into stage one, a 265-mile loop with 201 miles raced against the clock, Sanders took advantage of his start position to attack right from the get-go, mastering the dry, slippery terrain to open a gap on the rest of the field and winning the special by just under a minute.
Despite the best efforts of Monster Energy Honda’s Tosha Schareina in stage two, Sanders clinched the win once again. Stage three, the longest of the event, saw tactics come into play as riders attempted to conserve their tires on the long, demanding timed special. After easing off to ensure a safe finish, Sanders placed second to Schareina on the stage as the rally reached its halfway point.
Stage four was decisive. With a timed special of 170 miles, Sanders was able to push hard and subsequently open up a sizeable lead at the front of the field. Taking his third stage win of the event, Sanders would head into the final day with an advantage of over three minutes.
Sunday’s stage five saw Red Bull KTM’s Luciano Benavides claim the stage win, closely followed by Sanders in second and Canet in third, with the three teammates separated by just 10 seconds. The result saw Sanders take the overall win by a comfortable three minutes and 40 seconds.
In claiming victory at Rally-Raid Portugal, Sanders claimed the 2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship title with one round to spare.
“It’s a dream come true to win the World Championship,” Sanders said. “You think about it when you’re a kid no matter what sport you do, but I chose motorbikes, and it worked out well. The race here has gone so well, and the bike has been perfect, so a massive thank you to the team for all the hard work they put in. It’s very rare to have this sort of consistency in a rally, as it’s often so unpredictable. But up to now, we’ve put in a perfect season, and we’ll still be aiming to carry that into Morocco. It’s still all sinking in, really. I’m happy to get the World Championship here in Portugal, and hopefully, there’s a lot more to come.”
“We knew from the beginning that today would be difficult to take the win,” the stage three winner, Schareina, said after the final stage. “We started three minutes behind in the overall, and with just 60 miles to race, it was really difficult on the fast, sandy tracks, and I tried as hard as I could and came away with second overall.”
“It’s been a fantastic week for us,” Canet said, after finishing first in Rally2 and fifth overall.. “I’m super happy with the feeling on the bike and how I rode. This final stage was perfect with some rain overnight. The track was grippy and suited the tire we’re using, so we were able to push and come home with a KTM 1-2-3 on the special. Daniel has won the championship, and I am leading Rally2, so it’s been an incredible event for the team.”
Honda riders filled out the final five RallyGP positions, with Ricky Brabec taking fourth and Skyler Howes fifth.
“It was a fight all week between me and Luciano,” Brabec said, “as the guys up front were pulling really fast. I’m happy that I got to the end of the race in one piece.”
“I’m happy to be here at the end of this great race,” Howes said. “With rain [stage five], it’s always a little bit sketchy, but the courses were really good, the road books were awesome, so I’m happy.”CN
2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Round 5 Results
OVERALL (Top 5)
- Daniel Sanders (KTM) 12:39:39
- Tosha Schareina (Hon) 12:43:19 +3:40
- Luciano Benavides (KTM) 12:52:20 +12:41
- Ricky Brabec (Hon) 12:54:13 +14:34
- Edgar Canet (KTM) 13:01:36 +21:57
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