There would’ve been a time in his career that a Dakar stage win wasn’t news.
After all, he’s a four-time winner of the famous event and also won the first two World Rally-Raid (W2RC) titles alongside Nasser Al-Attiyah.
But following a life-changing 2025, Mathieu Baumel winning the opening stage of the Dakar in 2026 is simply extraordinary.
An accident last January, where he was struck by a civilian vehicle, cost the Frenchman his right leg, but not his drive, his determination nor his career.
Starting this year’s Dakar as co-driver to Guillaume de Mévius, Baumel wanted to become the first amputee to win a stage.
He did so at the very first attempt.
“What an achievement to win a stage, especially the very first one of the rally,” he beamed. “The first victory was simply being at the start at all. Now it’s even better: stage win and rally lead.
“From this point on, everything is a bonus.”
A disrupted connection to the tracker on De Mévius and Baumel’s X-raid Mini meant nobody knew how well the pair were doing until their final time came through.
“It’s fantastic to start the rally like this, but I have to admit, winning the stage was not really our goal,” de Mévius confessed.
“We didn’t feel like we were pushing especially hard or driving at a speed that would result in first place. Of course, we are very happy. Especially for Mathieu, this stage win is something special. It gives both of us a great feeling.”
Al-Attiyah was second fastest for Dacia, 40s down with Ford privateer Martin Prokop an early third overall.
