Luciano Benavides: "I just felt like it was still on"

Dakar 2026 | Stage 13 | YANBU > YANBU
January 17 ^th 2026 - 11:43 [GMT + 3]

Luciano Benavides has claimed his maiden Dakar title, marking his first-ever victory in an international rally. The younger Benavides brother, the 2023 world champion, etched the Argentinian family name onto the trophy for the third time, following Kevin's triumphs in 2021 and 2023.

"I gave it everything from start to finish today. I never stopped dreaming, I never stopped believing. I told those close to me that I didn't know why, but I just felt like it was still on. In the final three kilometres, Ricky took the wrong track and I took the right one. It was a glimmer of hope. I saw it was him and that he had to pull a U-turn to get back on the right line because crossing between the two was impossible. I saw the opening and I went for it. I'd told everyone before the start that this Dakar was mine. Nine years in the Dakar and my first win. My brother and I are making history. He won by forty-three seconds and I've won by two. I think I have him beaten on that front! It's a dream come true. Mathematically, it was impossible to beat Ricky today. But in yesterday's road section, I told myself I had done everything right and I wanted to finish strong. Everything happens for a reason, and I think today was just one of those days. Two seconds after two weeks and over 8,000 km is hard to believe."