Sanders crashes out of Dakar Rally contention and Al-Attiyah reclaims car lead

BISHA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Dakar Rally front-runner Daniel Sanders crashed and fell out of motorbike title contention and Nasser Al-Attiyah snatched back the car lead in the Saudi desert on Wednesday.

Sanders broke his left collarbone and sternum jumping a dune 138 kilometers into the 368-kilometer second half of a marathon stage to Bisha. The defending champion continued but slower and within 30 kilometers his six-minute overnight lead was gone.

The Australian's KTM finished 28 minutes behind stage 10 winner Adrien van Beveren's Honda and he dropped from first overall to fourth, more than 17 minutes back, two minutes off the podium.

That left the title to be decided between new leader Ricky Brabec and Luciano Benavides, second and third on the stage. The American's Honda and Argentine's KTM were separated overall by 56 seconds ahead of, effectively, a two stage shootout. The final stage on Saturday is usually a ceremonial ride.

Brabec won the Dakar in 2020 and 2024 while Benavides has never won; best placing was fourth last year.

Al-Attiyah has a sixth Dakar triumph in sight.

The dunes specialist from Qatar stamped his authority on the sandy special to finish second to Mathieu Serradori, who gave South African manufacturer Century its first Dakar stage win.

Serradori won his second career stage by six minutes.

The Fords of Nani Roma (first overnight), Carlos Sainz (second) and Mattias Ekström (fifth) were the biggest losers.

Ekström was first to the checkpoint at 91 kilometers but moments later suffered a mechanical problem. Roma lost his way and dropped 10 minutes just before passing 200 kilometers. Sainz also made a navigation error in the soft sand.

“I'm knackered, my back hurts, I suffered a lot today,” Roma said. “But that's part of the game.”

Also, Toyota's Henk Lategan, fourth overnight, ran out of fuel and made a navigation error.

Al-Attiyah grabbed the provisional overall lead about 200 kilometers into the 420-kilometer special and topped a Dacia 2-3-4 stage finish with Sébastien Loeb and Lucas Moraes.

“My head and body have taken a real beating,” Al-Attiyah said. “But we really attacked from start to finish. Fabian (Lurquin, navigator) did a great job and we can feel both happy and lucky because it was really hard.”

Overall, Al-Attiyah earned his biggest lead yet, over Lategan by 12 minutes, Roma by nearly 13 and Loeb by 23. Ekström and Sainz fell more than 34 minutes back.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

A spectator watches driver Brian Baragwanath and co-driver Leonard Cremer competing during the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally between Wadi Ad Dawasir and Bisha, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Jan.14, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Martin Prokop and co-driver Viktor Chytka compete during the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally between Wadi Ad Dawasir and Bisha, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Jan.14, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Carlos Sainz and co-driver Lucas Cruz compete during the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally between Wadi Ad Dawasir and Bisha, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Jan.14, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Guillaume de Mevius and co-driver Mathieu Baumel compete during the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally between Wadi Ad Dawasir and Bisha, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Jan.14, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Driver Lucas Moraes and co-driver Dennis Zenz compete during the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally between Wadi Ad Dawasir and Bisha, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Jan.14, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka began transferring more than 200 sailors from an Iranian vessel to shore Friday after the ship sought assistance while anchored outside the country’s waters, as tensions mounted in the Indian Ocean following the sinking of an Iranian warship by a U.S. submarine.

Sri Lanka navy spokesman Cmdr. Buddhika Sampath said the sailors of the IRIS Bushehr were being brought first to the port of Colombo and the ship will later be moved to an eastern port on the island.

“The disembarkation is in progress,” he said, adding the sailors would be taken to the naval base at Welisara, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Colombo, after medical exams and immigration procedures.

The move by the Sri Lankan government to take over the vessel came after the U.S. sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena off Sri Lanka’s coast Wednesday. The strike marked one of the rare instances since World War II in which a submarine sank a surface warship, and highlighted the expanding scope of the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran.

The Dena had participated in naval exercises hosted by India before heading into international waters on its way home. At least 74 countries had joined the events, according to India's Defense Ministry, including the U.S. Navy, which conducted reconnaissance aircraft and maritime patrol drills.

The Indian navy said Thursday that it had initiated search and rescue operations after receiving a distress signal from the Dena, deploying two aircraft along with a sailing training vessel. By the time the response was launched, the Sri Lankan navy had already started its own rescue efforts, it said.

The Sri Lankan navy rescued 32 sailors and recovered 87 bodies after the attack.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Dena had been carrying “almost 130” crew. The normal crew size for a warship of that class is 140.

Araghchi called the sinking an “atrocity at sea” and said the US would “bitterly regret” the attack.

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said late Thursday that authorities decided to take control of the Iranian vessel IRIS Bushehr after discussions with Iranian officials and the ship’s captain, after one of its engines failed.

“We have to understand that this is not an ordinary situation. It’s a request by a ship belonging to one party to enter into our port. We have to consider that according to the international treaties and conventions,” he told journalists Thursday night.

Separately on Friday, he wrote on X: “No civilian should die in wars. Our approach is that every single life is as precious as our own.”

The IRIS Bushehr had been described in previous Iranian media reports as a navy logistics ship that also had a helicopter pad on it.

The episode underscores how the conflict involving Iran is widening beyond the Middle East and spilling into the Indian Ocean, putting strategically located Sri Lanka in a delicate position as it tries to balance humanitarian obligations, international maritime law and its longstanding policy of non-alignment.

Dissanayake said some crew members would ​remain on board to help the Sri Lankan navy navigate the vessel to Trincomalee on the island’s northeast coast, about 265 kilometers (165 miles) from Colombo. The remaining sailors will be housed at a naval base, he said, adding that Sri Lanka was guided by neutrality while seeking to uphold humanitarian principles.

“We have followed a very clear stance. We will not be biased to any state not we will be submissive to any state,” he said.

Saaliq reported from New Delhi.

Iranian warship IRIS Dena is seen in the Bay of Bengal during International Fleet Review held at Visakhapatnam, India, Feb. 18, 2026. (AP Photo)

Iranian sailors, wearing t-shirts, who were rescued from IRIS Dena warship by Sri Lanka's navy, are escorted to a Judicial Medical Officer from the National Hospital, in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Two Iranian sailors, center, who were rescued from IRIS Dena warship by Sri Lanka's navy are escorted to a Judicial Medical Officer from the National Hospital, in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Two Iranian sailors, carrying green bags, who were rescued from IRIS Dena warship by Sri Lanka's navy are escorted to a Judicial Medical Officer from the National Hospital, in Galle, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)