On January 7th, Dakar 2026 entered the marathon stage, a crucial point in the first half of the rally. Day 1 of competition took place over 452 km in northern AlUla, and HINO TEAM SUGAWARA (Teruhito Sugawara/Hirokazu Somemiya/Yuji Mochizuki crew), competing in the truck class with the HINO600 series, finished the SS in 112th place overall in the four-wheel category/12th place in class. Their cumulative ranking up to this day was 103rd place overall in the four-wheel category, maintaining their position as 9th in the truck class.

This day marked Day 1 of the marathon stage, where the assistance team was absent from the bivouac, requiring participants to complete two stages without mechanic maintenance or parts replacement. A 452 km SS (special stage) was held again in northern AlUla. The SS starting point, reached via a 64 km liaison (transit section) from AlUla, was the same as the previous day, but the route thereafter differed, with separate courses set for two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles throughout the entire distance. The terrain featured somewhat more sandy high-speed pistes, with hard surfaces and rocky areas repeatedly appearing, maintaining a high risk of punctures. Additionally, severe dust and many sections with complex navigation instructions, combined with the long distance, made for a highly stressful stage.

HINO TEAM SUGAWARA continued to maintain concentration and a stable pace, running in 8th to 10th place from the early stages. Around the 240 km point in a high-speed section, the right rear wheel suffered a puncture, causing them to drop back to 13th place due to time lost during the tire change, but they recovered to 12th place toward the end and reached the goal in that position.

After a 14 km liaison, they proceeded to the marathon bivouac for participants called "REFUGE." This was also separated for two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles, with the organizers providing portable food and sets of tents, sleeping bags, and mats. The vehicle parking area was not a parc fermé, allowing free maintenance of vehicles. HINO TEAM SUGAWARA also performed simple inspections, led primarily by onboard mechanic Yuji Mochizuki, in preparation for the next day's competition. On the 8th, Day 2 of the marathon stage will take place, with 371 km of competition on a route from the marathon bivouac in AlUla to Hail in northeastern Saudi Arabia.

*Rankings are provisional as of 3:00 AM Japan time.

Teruhito Sugawara
We drove in the same area as the previous day, but the sand was somewhat deeper in the early stages. Overall, there were many high-speed sections, and the average vehicle speed was high. I don't know the cause of the puncture, but other than that, there were no problems. I think we can return early tomorrow.

Hirokazu Somemiya
The navigation had frequent cap (bearing) changes on off-road sections, and while there were no mistakes, it was busy. The dust entering the vehicle affected my throat, making it painful to read out instructions in a loud voice. I'm gargling with cola after reaching the goal.

Yuji Mochizuki
There were no temperature-related issues during the drive; I just turned off my intercom partway through because the noise had increased. Since we carry spare tires stacked two deep, I swapped the punctured tire with another spare at the vehicle parking area in the bivouac. After that, I did a simple visual inspection, but there were no problems with the vehicle body.