US EditionDe Mévius Wins Dakar Rally Stage One with Amputee Baumel
Guillaume de Mévius won the 305-km Dakar stage by 40 seconds over five-time champion Nasser Al Attiyah, marking a comeback for amputee navigator Mathieu Baumel.
- Belgian driver Guillaume de Mévius captured the opening car stage in Yanbu on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, completing the 305-kilometer loop 40 seconds ahead of five-time champion Nasser Al Attiyah.
- Mathieu Baumel, the French navigator, returned to racing after his amputation, having had his right leg amputated almost a year ago in France and previously winning four Dakars with Nasser Al-Attiyah.
- De Mévius's tracking beacon went silent for much of the stage, yet he won while Mattias Ekström fell to fourth, 1:38 behind, and Martin Prokop finished third at 1min 30sec.
- De Mévius acknowledged the win, saying `Winning a stage always feels good but it wasn't really our strategy for the day`, while Yazeed Al Rajhi received a 16-minute penalty and is 28:52 off the pace.
- On Monday, competitors will tackle a first big day toward Al Ula after more than 500km, 400 of which are individually timed, and with 12 stages remaining, standings could reshuffle.
27 Articles
27 Articles
Guillaume de Mevius and his co-driver Mathieu Baumel won the first stage of the Dakar this Sunday 4 January. A feat for the latter, the victim of a serious accident less than a year ago in which he left his...
An enormous triumph, amputee Baumel wins Dakar Rally first stage
Mathieu Baumel, an amputee navigator, celebrates a remarkable comeback by winning the first stage of the Dakar Rally with driver Guillaume De Mevius, just 11 months after losing his leg. Discover the inspiring journey of triumph and resilience in the face of adversity.
The four-time winner of the French Dakar and his Belgian co-driver Guillaume de Mévius won the first stage of the Dakar this Sunday.
"We're going to try to win a special, it would be a great reward for everything that happened this year."A few days ago, before the big start of the Dakar 2026, Mathieu Baumel entrusted us with his ambitions. Almost a year after his violent road accident which caused the amputation of his right leg, the French co-driver was preparing to return to the rally he won four times, with some emotion.He only needed one stage to reach his goal. After an …
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