Against the Odds - Badawi Trail to the Last Oasis 2026 finishes in Jeddah
*Second Running of this Middle Eastern Classic is successful Saudi only rally
*Rejigged Route Keeps Rally Safe as Competitors consent to take part
*Richard Clark and Jonathan Round win overall in Ford V8
*Xavier and Lucas de Sarrau take Classic Class win in HERO-ERA Prodrive Mustang
Against the odds, The Badawi Trail to the Last Oasis started on Saturday 28th March and finished back in Jeddah where it started 13 days and 5000 kms previously, within the walls of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. The racetrack should have been hosting the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, but as we know, the world has changed over the past month. The rally seems insignificant in the face of conflict, a conflict that has turned people’s lives in this region upside down in recent weeks. The competitors who consented to continue and take part, felt fortunate to experience such hospitality and adventure, with the encouragement and support of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The rally was able to forge ahead – albeit in a rejigged format.
Thankfully though, HERO-ERA were able to run an event centered around the western part of Saudi Arabia, with a large majority of that following the original planned route, with additional days added to create a Saudi only rally, starting and ending in Jeddah.
None of this would be possible without the blessing and the friendship of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who were still keen for the rally to go ahead and who helped facilitate the running of the event plus its additional days.
There was plenty of desert driving, more so as they followed in the wheel tracks of the Classic Dakar. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is about so much more than desert though, with tremendous mountains and even better roads cutting a path through the ancient topography. Desert and mountain tracks, wadis, camping, wind, and rain. All had to be conquered by the 21 crews, three retiring but two of them finishing the event in 4x4 hire cars after such punishment halted their own rally cars. 40 regularities and 15 Sporting TC Sections meant that this endurance event was as tough as ever.
However, this was just the rugged test that at least half of the field craved as a shake down to the 2028 Peking to Paris Motor Challenge which will be the longest and most adventurous yet. The crew of a1907 Italaentered the Badawi to do just that. The actual sister car to the original winner of the1907 Peking to Paris driven by Prince Borghese was crewed by 2025 P2P solo drive record breaker Tomas de Vargas Machuca, Ben Cussons and riding mechanic come journalist David Ayres. The 119 year old machine made quite a sight for the Saudis as the crew completed the course in a commendable 5th place overall to win the Pioneer Class. A great portent for the P2P to come.
It isn’t just the varied landscape that is spectacular, Saudi Arabia is full of other wonders too, both ancient and modern. The rock tombs at Hegra, and the Maraya, the world’s largest mirrored building that serves as a giant optical illusion, are just two of the highlights of the journey, not to mention a lap or two of the Grand Prix circuit which kicked things off!
Resilience, spirit and navigation were key requirements for the adventurers as they tackled a great route that included running along part of the Red Sea and crossing the Sarawaf and Hijaz mountains. Al Ula, Tabuk, Duba were key areas of the thirteen legs with Islamic history represented in Madinah, the resting place of the Profit. Teams stopped for photos with their weary rally cars next to the famous ‘Mushroom Rock’ in the Valley of the Mesas before encountering more tests and Sporting Sections along the adjacent plateau that seriously resembled the surface of Mars.
After thirteen hard days, the 20 survivors were back in the courtyard of the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Jeddah. All the crews gathered to cheer each other over the line, but the home of the victory hadn’t really been in question since day 1 and deservedly went to the all-conquering Ford V8 Coupe of Richard Clark and Jonathan Round. The pairing that triumphed in the Pearl of India last year can now add Saudi Arabia to the list of rally wins, but for a couple of breakdowns they would have ended the event with just 1 minute and 3 seconds of penalty.
Their performances in all conditions was nothing short of remarkable, often besting the classic machines. Both were delighted to take the win, with Richard saying “It’s always great to be back in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We have been hosted amazingly, and it is a fantastic honour to win against some stiff competition. Everyone who has finished deserves merit; it hasn’t been easy.”
Navigator Jonathan added, “We’ve had a wonderful time, so happy to be here and happy that it [the rally] has gone ahead. Thank you to everyone so much for their support.”
The Classic Category witnessed a closer fight, that was still open for debate until two days before the finish. Ultimately the Ford Mustang of Swiss Xavier de Sarrau and Lucas de Sarrau finished top of the charts, the father and son pair topping the leaderboard in the Prodrive developed Mustang. They were chased hard though, with several other suitors vying for the top spot, including the Mercedes Benz 450 SLC of Belgian crew Kurt Deklerck and Patrick Debusseré, who did in fact break down during the final moments of the rally.
For the second half of the event though, it was the twin Toyota Land Cruisers of Spaniard Alfonso de Orleans-Borbon and Dutchman Haikko Visser, and Canadian Yang Zhan and German Jason Zhe Ren that werehounding the Mustang. Remarkably, the number de Borbon Land Cruiser rolled early in the event, when Alfonso was teamed with his son Alonso, and had to conquer several mechanical issues since – including the engine mounts breaking, so to finish second was some result. Ultimately though, the green Ford Mustang triumphed, with driver Xavier stating “This win was nursed progressively, there was some stress, but Lucas was so motivating. The first long distance rally in the car, so I’m happy, well managed and well monitored by my son.”
Navigator and son Lucas said of the win, “It’s truly amazing, we didn’t expect to do so well, but with a lot of concentration through the rally we have been able to win in the end.”