Isidre Esteve is back in the fight at Dakar 2026. After the complicated day in Stage 2, which was heavily affected by an extremely far-back starting position, the Repsol Toyota Rally Team driver, with Txema Villalobos in the right seat, was able to run today in fairer conditions. Despite suffering a puncture, he managed to recover positions and show he has the pace to be higher up.
A 736-kilometre stage (421 timed) starting and finishing in Al Ula allowed Esteve to begin leaving behind the nightmare of the previous day. Following a meeting with the FIA, the Catalan driver—together with other affected competitors—secured a change to the regulations: the margin used to determine the starting order was expanded from 110% to 117% of the winner’s time. This is a somewhat fairer system that prevents fast drivers from getting trapped in the dust behind cars from lower categories.
It is worth remembering that, under this rule, Ultimate entries that fall outside that percentage of the leader’s time are pushed back in the next day’s start order behind the leading vehicles in Challenger, SSV and Stock.
To reduce the impact of what happened the previous day, the team used the “joker” available because they are entered in the World Championship. This allowed them to start 40th—a position that, while not ideal, at least meant they could run only among Ultimate-category vehicles and avoid traffic from other classes. Under these conditions, the driver from Oliana (Lleida), backed by Repsol, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Spain, MGS Seguros and KH-7, was able to gain several positions aboard his Toyota DKR GR Hilux number 233. In the end, he finished 28th in the Ultimate category (30th overall), a result that moves him up the overall standings, where he now sits 34th in class (35th overall).
The day was not without setbacks. On very demanding terrain, with many rocky sections, Esteve suffered another puncture on the rear right wheel of the car—his third in three stages—which cost him valuable time in a category where every minute is decisive.
The driver admits this situation forces him to be extra cautious in the stony sections, which have been very present at the start of this Dakar: “We were putting together a solid special, but we punctured again—once more the rear right—and that cost us some time. When you puncture on the rocks you lose a bit of confidence, so now it’s time to rebuild it and continue adapting to the new car,” he explains.
The feelings are positive and reinforce the idea that yesterday’s starting position did not reflect his true performance: “The pace is there. If it weren’t for the punctures, we could be higher up, because in this category losing minutes—even a few—really shows. The Toyota is working well and I’m sure we’ll improve. I’m really looking forward to the marathon stage, and let’s see if we can finally have a clean day.”
Dakar 2026 now heads into one of its key moments. Tomorrow, Wednesday, Stage 4 will take place—the first part of the feared marathon. After 452 timed kilometres and 78 liaison kilometres, drivers will not have assistance from their teams at the end of the day; they will have to repair any damage themselves to face the following day, with the only help allowed being between competitors or from assistance trucks out on the course. At the end of the special, they will spend the night in a bivouac-shelter before setting off for the second part of the marathon.
Source: Repsol Toyota Rally Team
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