The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider delivered a commanding performance across the five-day event in San Juan, recovering from an early setback in the prologue to take control of round three with four stage wins from five en route to a 12-minute overall victory.
Sanders’ week began with trouble in navigation during the prologue, leaving him seventh, but he immediately responded on stage one by slicing through the field to take victory and move into the rally lead.
From there, the Australian stamped his authority on the event, winning stages one, two and three and helping KTM secure strong stage results before managing his advantage through a trickier stage four and sealing the win on the final day.
It capped a crucial result in the context of his title defence, with Sanders also taking over the championship lead after the round.
“It’s been a really good week for us,” Sanders said.
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“To come away with another win after Dakar and Portugal is a huge boost, and taking over the championship lead makes it even more rewarding.
“I felt comfortable on the bike all week and the team did an incredible job.
“Of course, I always like to look back and find areas where I can improve because there are always things to work on, but overall it’s been a strong performance and a great result heading into the break.”
The result continues Sanders’ strong 2026 campaign after his Rally-Raid Portugal victory in March, where he also re-established himself as a major title contender following his Dakar disappointment in January.
Honda’s Tosha Schareina again emerged as his closest challenger, finishing second overall and limiting the damage on the final stage to remain firmly in the title fight.
Schareina sits just three points behind Sanders in the standings, with Luciano Benavides also in close pursuit after a strong but ultimately frustrating home round.
The Argentine entered the event as championship leader and showed front-running pace throughout the week, including a prologue win and multiple podium-stage finishes, but small mistakes and a late crash dropped him to fourth overall.
Ricky Brabec completed the podium in third, with Adrien Van Beveren fifth as the Honda riders maintained pressure at the front of the championship fight.
The championship will now take a four-month break, with the next event taking place in Morocco from September 28 to October 3.
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