Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge delivers drama on opening stage as Moraes and Schareina lead the way
A centre of traditional culture, and the site of a stunning fort, Mezaira'a is the largest settlement in Liwa Oasis, a belt of oases that stretches for over 110 kilometres. The region is also home to Tal Moreeb, which, at 300 metres high and 1.2 kilometres long, is one of the largest dunes in the world.
Located in the heart of the Al Dhafra region, Liwa has a long history as a Bedouin stronghold and in times past its forts provided welcome refuge for the people of Abu Dhabi. Combining natural beauty and cultural significance. it provides rich heritage and stands as a fascinating gateway to the deep desert of the Rub' Al Khali.
Leaving behind the beautiful starting city of Al Ain, the opening stage featured a challenging 243 km special stage that took riders and drivers deep into the heart of the Abu Dhabi desert. With more than quarters of the special comprised of sand and dunes, and the rest featuring dry lake beds and dirt tracks, the stage was a true test of endurance and navigational sharpness.
And demonstrating mastery of both skill on the bikes was Honda HRC's Tosha Schareina. The Spanish rider got his Desert Challenge off to the perfect start by taking top spot in a thrilling Qualifying Stage in Al Ain. The victory afforded him the opportunity to be the last of the top to choose his starting place for Stage 1 and the Spaniard wisely opted to start 10 th, with nine wayfinding tracks ahead of him to follow.
And the strategy played out perfectly. Schareina attacked hard and after 164 kilometres he was 1 minute and 15 seconds clear of nearest challenger Luciano Benavides. Over the remaining distance he stretched the gap, and the Honda rider claimed the stage win just over two minutes ahead of team-mate Ricky Brabec and more than three clear of Red Bull KTM factory rider Benavides.
Schareina will now be first out of the gate for Stage 2 and will have to forge a path for his rivals, but the Spaniard says he's ready to take that challenge. 'It was really good today. I was ready to push. I thought the rest of the riders wouldn't want to open tomorrow and I think we won so tomorrow we have that difficult mission to open the stage, and we'll see.'
It was a different story in the cars category. Qualifying Stage winner Nasser Al Attiyah was quickest through Km 107, but last year's Desert Challenge winner was outstripped for pace in the final section by Toyota Gazoo Racing's Lucas Moraes who stormed to the Stage win 1m 01s ahead of Al Attiyah's Dacia Sandriders team-mate Sébastien Loeb with Seth Quintero third in the other factory Hilux, just over two minutes off the pace. Al Attiyah slid to fourth place at the end of the stage, 02m 16s off top spot.
For Moraes Sunday marked his first Desert Challenge stage win and his eighth W2RC triumph. The result hands Toyota their 67th victory in the championship. Last year, his Hilux burned at Stage 3 arrival while he was fighting for victory.
The shock of the day came from Overdrive Racing's Yazeed Al Rajhi. The 2025 Dakar winner suffered a suspected loss of engine power on his Toyota Hilux, and he ended the stage 8m 14s down on Moraes' time.
There was drama in the Challenger Class when BBR Motorsport's early-stage leader Nicolás Cavigliasso rolled his car at km 83. The Argentinian and his co-driver wife Valentina Pertegarini emerged unscathed but had to call on their assistance crew for repairs. Challenger honours eventually went to Cavigliasso's team-mate Dania Akeel as BBR took the top three spots.
In the Quad category there were homegrown celebrations as Aldbulaziz Ahli recovered from a troubled Qualifying Stage to roar to victory in Stage 1 a massive 12 minutes ahead of Enrico Gaspari. The Stage's Rally 2 winner was South Africa's Michael Docherty.
Stage 2 will take the competitors on a tricky 302 km around Mezaira'a with 74kms of road and a 228 km special stage through the often treacherous terrain of the Liwa Oasis.
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