Edgar Canet has claimed his maiden RallyGP victory at the 2026 Rallye du Maroc, defeating teammate and championship leader Daniel Sanders by just over one minute after five demanding stages in Morocco.
Canet’s calculated and consistent week saw the Spaniard finish inside the top four on every special after opening the event with second place in the Prologue. Sanders finished second overall, while Ricky Brabec charged to victory on the final stage to secure the final step of the overall podium.
Luciano Benavides finished fourth, narrowly missing out on a Red Bull KTM podium lockout, with Adrien Van Beveren completing the top five.
More importantly for the championship, Sanders leaves Morocco with his lead extended to 13 points heading into the final round of the 2026 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship.
Following the summer break, the championship returned to action in Morocco for its fourth round, with Sanders arriving as the series leader after victories in Portugal and Argentina. Benavides entered the rally third in the championship, while Canet was seventh and looking to make up ground after a mixed season to that point.
Canet immediately put himself in contention with second fastest in the Prologue and never dropped outside the top four across the five stages. His consistency proved decisive as the 21-year-old stayed out of trouble while several of his more experienced rivals lost time through navigation errors.
The result gives Canet his first RallyGP victory and moves him into fifth in the championship standings.
“I’m really happy. There are a lot of emotions right now and what we’ve achieved doesn’t quite feel real yet,” Canet said. “I think I need some time to really take it all in, but I’m super happy. We showed everyone what we can do and where we can be, so I’m really proud of that.
“It was a crazy race with lots of ups and downs, and navigation was really important. At certain points, I had the feeling that I was in the right place and doing what I needed to do. To win this rally is an amazing feeling and I’m really happy with what we’ve achieved. Hopefully, this isn’t the last one.”
For Sanders, the Rallye du Maroc proved more complicated than the previous two rounds, but the Australian still achieved the bigger championship objective by extending his advantage at the top of the standings.
The KTM rider began the event by winning the Prologue before finishing second on stage one. He then took victory on stage two, the 35th stage win of his World Rally-Raid Championship career, and moved into the overall rally lead.
A minor navigation error on stage three proved costly, however, with Sanders finishing seventh and dropping to third overall. He responded immediately on day four with another stage victory to regain the rally lead, only for fifth place on the final special to drop him behind Canet in the final classification.
The runner-up result nevertheless increases Sanders’ championship advantage to 13 points over Benavides with just one round remaining.
“I’m obviously happy to get to the finish and still be in a strong position in the championship, but personally it’s been a frustrating rally,” Sanders said. “I knew it was going to be close today and I gave it everything I had, but unfortunately we came up just short. I made some mistakes during the week and there were a few situations that didn’t go our way, so it’s disappointing because I felt like we were riding really well.
“On the positive side, it’s been a great result for the team. Edgar has taken his first RallyGP win, Luciano finished fourth, and we’ve shown really strong pace throughout the rally. The team has done a great job all week and I’ve done my best every day, so I can hold my head high. Most importantly, we’re still leading the championship and in a good position going into the final round.”
Benavides also had a strong week in Morocco and looked on course for another KTM podium after finishing fourth on each of the opening two stages.
The 2026 Dakar Rally winner then took victory on stage three, moving himself into second overall, before a navigation mistake on the penultimate stage saw him post the seventh-fastest time and fall to third.
Benavides fought back with second on the final stage but could not regain the podium position, ultimately finishing fourth overall. The result was still enough to move him into second in the championship standings, level on 74 points with Schareina.
“I’m happy to finish the Rallye du Maroc fourth overall and with second place on the final stage,” Benavides said. “It was a little bit different to the type of race we’re normally used to, but I’m happy to finish healthy and I’m super happy for the team.
“Edgar took his first win, Daniel finished second and continues to lead the championship, and I’m now second in the championship as well, so it’s a great result for everyone. We’ve also made some really good improvements with the bike and I’m feeling great.
“Now we’ll get ready for Abu Dhabi and the final race of the year. I’m feeling strong and really positive looking ahead to the next Dakar. A huge thank you to the whole team and everyone who supports us.”
Behind the KTM trio, Brabec produced one of the strongest rides of the final day to snatch third overall for Monster Energy Honda HRC.
The American began the final stage with just 1:44 in hand over Benavides in the battle for the final overall podium position, leaving little room for error over the 234-kilometre special.
Following a 98-kilometre road section, riders faced the demanding Moroccan desert, including the spectacular Chegaga dunes, before a final 23-kilometre timed dash back towards the Zagora bivouac.
Brabec was immediately on the pace, setting the fastest time by the 91-kilometre checkpoint. Small changes to the bike helped him attack the high-speed terrain with greater confidence, and the two-time Dakar winner continued to increase the pressure on Benavides.
By the end of the opening timed section, Brabec had established a two-minute advantage over his KTM rival. The final 23 kilometres were slower and rockier, but Brabec remained composed to claim his second stage win of the rally and secure third overall.
The result was Brabec’s 15th FIM World Rally-Raid Championship stage victory and his fifth podium at the Rallye du Maroc.
Reflecting on the week, Brabec said the rally had been demanding but that the team had made progress with the Honda ahead of the Dakar.
“The week was cool, but it was definitely demanding. We had a couple of roadbook and navigation mistakes and some really broken ground, so it’s good to come away from here healthy and in one piece,” Brabec said. “I’m happy with the bike and with the changes we made for the final day. I think we’re heading in a good direction and now we can go home and focus on preparing for the Dakar.
“Overall, I’m happy. Today’s stage was quite short, so we didn’t have much opportunity to make a bigger push and the times were really tight. It’s always cool to battle with these guys, but the most important thing is that we’re going home healthy. We know the areas where we were lacking here in Morocco, so now we can work on those and make sure we’re ready for the Dakar.”
Tosha Schareina finished the rally sixth overall after a difficult opening to his title defence in Morocco. Last year’s winner gradually rediscovered his rhythm and confidence and was particularly strong across the final three days.
The Spaniard finished third on the final stage, just 3:03 behind Brabec, but the result came too late to move him back onto the overall podium.
“It’s not the Rallye du Maroc we expected or wanted, but that’s part of the game,” Schareina said. “We’ve learned so much this week and everything we’ve experienced here will be really valuable as we prepare for the Dakar.
“It’s the first time in two years that I haven’t finished on the podium, so of course I’m a little disappointed about that. But I’m really happy with how the last couple of days went and with the progress we’ve made throughout the rally. We’ve learned a lot, we know what we need to work on and now I’m ready to focus on the Dakar.”
Adrien Van Beveren also recovered from a difficult opening to finish fifth overall for Honda. The Frenchman gradually rebuilt his momentum throughout the event, but another navigation error on the final stage, combined with difficult and dusty conditions, limited him to sixth on the day, 6:09 behind Brabec.
Despite missing the opportunity to move further up the order, Van Beveren leaves Morocco with valuable kilometres ahead of his 12th Dakar Rally in January.
“It’s been a tough stage. I got a little confused with the navigation before the dunes and then Ricky caught up with me,” Van Beveren explained. “I tried to push through the dunes and find a good rhythm, but once we reached the chott the navigation became really tricky.
“I tried to give my best and I let Ricky go because I didn’t want to bother him while he was fighting for the overall podium. After that, I was in the dust for a while and the conditions were really tricky, even a little dangerous in places, so the priority was to stay upright and keep focused.
“Towards the end I made a small navigation mistake, but that’s part of rally-raid and we keep learning. The main goal here was to prepare for the Dakar and we’ve gathered a lot of useful information about the bike, my physical preparation and the areas where I can improve my riding. Now I want to keep pushing and working really hard until the Dakar and then go for it.”
Hero MotoSports Team Rally also had a strong presence in the RallyGP field, with Chilean rider Nacho Cornejo showing strong pace throughout the event despite early navigation challenges in the dust and rocky Moroccan terrain. He consistently broke into the top 10 and added an impressive stage podium on stage three before finishing eighth on the final special.
Mike Docherty also completed the Rallye du Maroc for Hero MotoSports, using the event as another important step in his preparation and integration with the team.
“I am happy to finish the Rally du Maroc 2026. It’s been a challenging week with a lot of learning and experiences,” Docherty said. “I am grateful to the Hero MotoSport Rally Team. Its been quite a big change for me over the last couple of months so being with the team here has helped a lot. We are going to keep working and keep improving in the next rallies to get ready for the Dakar.”
Cornejo described his Moroccan campaign as a mixed experience but was encouraged by the progress made throughout the week.
“It’s been some bittersweet days for us at this tough rally so I am happy to cross the finish line,” Cornejo said. “There’ve been a lot of positives as well like my confidence is back and speed has also improved. So really happy with all the steps we have made in the direction and we’ll keep working hard for the next challenges. Thanks a lot for all the hard work by the team and for all the best wishes from our supporters back in India.”
For Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, the result capped a particularly strong week, with three different riders now having won rounds of the 2026 championship.
