The eighth stage of the Dakar 2025 took participants to the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh. Once again, the route featured a mix of gravel tracks, sandy sections, and dunes, while the motorcycles followed their own course. João Ferreira and Filipe Palmeiro finished the stage in eighth place, securing another Top 10 result. The MINI JCW Rally 3.0d crew maintains their ninth place in the overall standings.
Vladas Jurkevicius and Aisvydas Paliukenas in the MINI JCW Rally 3.0i and Lionel and Lucie Baud in the MINI JCW Rally 3.0d finished in 20th and 22nd places, respectively. The French father-daughter duo continues to climb the overall standings and now sits in 20th place. Denis Krotov and Konstantin Zhiltsov finished 32nd today.
For Guillaume de Mévius and Mathieu Baumel in the MINI JCW Rally 3.0i, it was unfortunately a tough day. The pair lost over an hour due to a repair stop and had to settle for 110th place. This setback dropped them to 29th in the overall standings.
Challenger Category
Annett Quandt and Annie Seel finished 23rd in the Challenger category in the X-raid Fenic today, moving up to 12th place overall. Annett Quandt is now the highest-ranked female driver in the Challenger field.
What’s next:
Stage 9 takes the field further south to Haradh. The 257-kilometer route promises one thing above all: speed!
Quotes from the team
João Ferreira (#240 MINI JCW Rally 3.0d): “At the start of the stage, we were stuck in the dust. We managed to overtake many other vehicles, but unfortunately, we had two flat tires. Still, we’re holding onto our Top 10 position, which is exactly where we want to be.”
Lionel Baud (#224 MINI JCW Rally 3.0d): “This was one of the toughest Dakar stages for me. But Lucie and I are very satisfied. She did an excellent job navigating, which made driving much easier for me. The result is a good stage finish and gains in the overall standings. The MINI is running perfectly, and the X-raid team is doing a fantastic job.”
Vladas Jurkevicius (#241 MINI JCW Rally 3.0i): “With 488 kilometers, this was the longest Dakar stage so far. Everything went very well for us. We managed to overtake a few vehicles. On the final kilometers, we had no one in front of us and could drive at our own pace. We’re getting to know the MINI better and better. Overall, it was a very good day for us.”
Guillaume de Mévius (#222 MINI JCW Rally 3.0i): “After about 100 kilometers, we encountered a technical issue and had to stop for repairs, which took a long time. Afterward, we only had front-wheel drive. We drove through a lot of dust, and then the dunes came. Driving a vehicle with only front-wheel drive in the desert is very challenging. It was a tough and difficult day.”
Annett Quandt (#315 X-raid Fenic): “The last few kilometers were nothing but dunes, and we’re glad we made it before nightfall. The dunes were very soft and steep. There were also many spectators, which required extra attention. The entire stage was extremely demanding. At one point, we encountered deep, churned-up Fesh-Fesh followed by an uphill section. We had to find an alternative route there.”
Result stage 8
1. H. Lategan / B. Cummings – Toyota – 4h 51m 54s
2. G. Botterill / D. Murohy – Toyota – 4h 53m 41s
3. M. Serradori / L. Minaudier – Century – 4h 55m 58s
4. B. Baragwanath / L. Cremer – Century – 4h 56m 03s
5. N. Roma / A. Haro – Ford – 4h 57m 11s
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8. J. Ferreira / F. Palmeiro – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 4h 58m 36s
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20. V. Jurkevicius / A. Paliukenas – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 5h 12m 10s
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22. L. Baud / L. Baud – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 5h 12m 38s
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32. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 5h 20m 36s
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103. A. Quandt / A. Seel – X-raid Fenic – 6h 33m 31s
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125. G. de Mévius / M. Baumel – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 7h 04m 43s
Overall standings
1. H. Lategan / B. Cummings – Toyota – 42h 05m 02s
2. Y. Al-Rajhi / T. Gottschalk – Toyota – 42h 10m 43s
3. M. Ekström / E. Bergkvist – Ford – 42h 33m 57s
4. N. Al-Attiyah / E. Boulanger – Dacia – 42h 39m 16s
5. M. Guthrie / K. Walch – Ford – 43h 00m 41s
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9. J. Ferreira / F. Palmeiro – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 44h 10m 09s
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20. L. Baud / L. Baud – MINI JCW Rally 3.0d – 47h 35m 16s
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29. G. de Mévius / M. Baumel – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 48h 00m 39s
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65. A. Quandt / A. Seel – X-raid Fenic – 57h 55m 31s
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102. D. Krotov / K. Zhiltsov – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 90h 06m 21s
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126. V. Jurkevicius / A. Paliukenas – MINI JCW Rally 3.0i – 168h 01m 36s