Vaidotas Zala: "Taking care of the hardware"

Dakar 2026 | Stage 10 | BIVOUAC REFUGE > BISHA
January 14 ^th 2026 - 16:02 [GMT + 3]

Vaidotas Žala has been forcefully rising through the truck ranks since departing Yanbu. The Lithuanian got himself onto the overall podium after stage 7 and had held second place for the last two days. Today, he emerged from the marathon-refuge stage as the new leader by 18′55″ over Aleš Loprais.

"The second part of the marathon stage was really tough, with soft dunes and an average speed of 40 km/h. I did my best to take care of the hardware, especially the suspension, because I could feel everything getting very hot. I also caught sight of Aleš Loprais ahead of us, which allowed me to manage the gap. Three days to go. The first part of the marathon was not that tricky, but the second half really gave us a kick in the teeth. You never know what's coming next."