Ales Loprais, alongside his teammates David Kripal and Darek Rodewald, powered through the second stage of the 2025 Dakar Rally in their Iveco Powerstar, finishing in second place. This result also positions them as runners-up in the overall truck category standings after two stages.
The InstaSpot Loprais Team De Rooy FPT began the challenging segment of the competition, officially dubbed the "48 Chrono Stage." This marathon stretch covered a total of 1,058 kilometers, with 967 kilometers designated as a special stage.
“How do you even summarize nearly 970 kilometers of racing? It’s an intense experience! To be honest, I can barely remember what happened halfway through,” joked navigator David Kripal while recounting the past two days' adventures.
“Sunday was a solid day overall. We got briefly stuck on a dune, but nothing serious came of it. The course consisted of rocky tracks, riverbeds, and dunes—some of the softest and trickiest I’ve ever seen. They were relentless and challenging. We ended up racing against Martin Macik and managed to reach the third bivouac. That was quite the achievement,” Kripal explained. The #601 Iveco truck was among only three to make it as far as the 546-kilometer marker on Sunday. Most competitors faced difficulties that halted their progress earlier in the stage.
By early Monday morning, the leading teams in the truck division began tackling the remaining portion of the marathon stage. With over 400 kilometers of tough special stages ahead, the competition was intense.
“We started just a minute behind Macik and quickly caught up with him in the dunes. The stage went exceptionally well—we even took the lead for a while. However, around the 880th or 890th kilometer, we ran into some issues while navigating vegetation and camel grass. A group of buggies surrounded us as we searched for a waypoint,” Kripal elaborated.
Loprais himself added, “It was a nail-biting contest, with very little time separating us from our competitors. Today’s dunes were especially dangerous—extremely soft and deceptive. But we managed to hold our own.”
Unfortunately, the navigation delay allowed Martin Macik to regain the lead. To compound their challenges, Loprais’ team suffered a puncture just 12 kilometers from the finish line. The delay ultimately cost them the top spot, pushing them to second place in the marathon stage rankings.
In the overall truck category standings, the red-and-black Iveco team retains second place, trailing leader Martin Macík by less than nine minutes. Their gap over third-placed Vaidotas Zala of Lithuania is a comfortable 30 minutes, providing a strong buffer heading into the next stage.
On Tuesday, January 7, the rally shifts focus as competitors depart from Bisha, their base since arriving in Saudi Arabia. The teams will head northwest towards Al Henakiyah for the third stage. This leg of the rally spans 847 kilometers, with 496 kilometers comprising a special stage.
The upcoming special stage is expected to start with technical challenges before transitioning into high-speed segments.
LOPRAIS TATRA TEAM & DAKAR CLASSIC PERFORMANCE
On Monday, January 6, participants in the Dakar Classic division also completed the second portion of their marathon stage. Their skills and endurance were tested through two regularity challenges and a navigation trial. The results were promising for the Loprais Tatra Team.
In the first trial of the day, Jiri Husek, Lubomir Dockal, and Dominik Holan claimed an impressive second place in the H2 Truck class. Their teammates, Igor Pazdera, Olga Lounova, and Milan Holan, racing with the Tatra 815-2 “Puma,” performed equally well in the following trial, earning third place in their category. The Tatra 815 4×4 HAS crew followed closely, achieving another strong result.
In the final navigation test, the Tatra trucks secured respectable placements, with Husek finishing fifth and Pazdera seventh.
