Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2027 has revised route with 3 new stages and record distance

JEDDAH: The Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2027 will feature the longest competitive stage distance since Dakar arrived in Saudi Arabia, covering 5,320 km of timed specials, surpassing the 4,903 km recorded in the 2025 edition.

Saudi Motorsport Co. and Amaury Sport Organization, in cooperation with the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation and under the supervision of the Ministry of Sport, have also unveiled the route for the rally from Jan. 1 to 15, according to a recent press release from the organizers.

The contest will take competitors on a full loop route, starting and finishing in King Abdullah Economic City in Rabigh governorate.

The course will include three entirely new stages and place a particular focus on the Red Sea region, while offering a varied mix of terrain. Sand sections, in their different forms, will feature more prominently, with fewer rocky sections, adding a new layer of technical challenge for competitors.

While the route is geographically focused, it is set to deliver one of the longest, most varied and most demanding editions staged in the Kingdom.

Throughout the journey, competitors will face shifting conditions that demand a high level of adaptability. The route will also include a marathon stage, during which crews will spend the night at the bivouac with limited outside assistance before resuming competition the following day.

Prince Khalid bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, chairman of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation and Saudi Motorsport Co., said Dakar “has found a natural home in the Kingdom.”

He said this was “not only because of its geographic diversity and demanding terrain, which align closely with the nature of the rally, but also because of the values it