Hino the renowned Japanese truck and bus manufacturers, will again be the only entry from a truck brand based in Asia to contest the 2026 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia.
Under the Team Sugawara partnership and crew Hino, will be competing this famous endurance rally-raid for the 35th consecutive time. On each occasion Hino has been an official finisher, which is an unprecedented record for reliability.
This year it will be part of a strong field of 46 trucks entered by teams from Eastern and Western Europe.
There are eight different makes that will be competing against a single Hino 600 Series racing truck in the 2026 event, which takes place in Saudi Arabia from January 3-17. Iveco, with 20 entries, is the most popular truck. It is followed by MAN with 13 entries. Other makes in the field are Tatra, DAF (3 each), Renault, Scania (2 each), Mercedes-Benz and Volvo (1 each).
The Russian Kamaz trucks, which were so dominant in the Dakar Rally for many years, scoring 19 wins, have not contested the event since 2023 when the manufacturer refused to sign a document condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The 2026 Dakar Rally will start and finish in the port city of Yanbu with a route that takes an 8,000 km loop through Saudi Arabia which includes 5,000 km of timed racing sections. There will be a one day rest period in Riyad, the country’s capital, on 10 January.
Teruhito Sugawara, the Team Principal of Team Hino Sugawara, will again drive the Hino in the Dakar. He has a proud record of 20 successive finishes. His navigator will be Somemiya Hirokazu, while Mochizuki Yuji, a technician, is the third person in the crew.
■ Team Director and Driver: Teruhito Sugawara
“While we did get the sense that we could compete on equal terms with the leading group in the 2025 event, we also suffered a serious problem that could have directly led to our retirement from the race altogether. Overcoming this difficult situation as a team helped us boost our strength as a team even further.
For the 2026 event, we will not only continue to make upgrades to address these problems, but also aim to reach even greater heights by creating an aggressive machine.
Please look forward to Hino Motors’ performance in its 35th entry in the Dakar Rally!”
■ Mechanic: Masakazu Tazawa, Nishi Tohoku Hino Motors
“I am grateful for this opportunity to join the team as a representative of Nishi Tohoku Hino Motors. I am ready to support the team with all I’ve got, carrying with me the hopes of all Hino employees and colleagues who I competed with in the selection process. I am determined to make sure that our truck makes Hino’s 35th consecutive finish in this rally so that we can pass on the baton that we took over from dealership mechanics on the team last year.”
■ Mechanic: Hiroki Imagawa, Minami Kanto Hino Motors
I am very happy to be able to take part in the rally as a mechanic for HINO TEAM SUGAWARA. This has been my dream. We know that this rally is called the ‘world’s most gruelling’, and we are committed to put what we have learned so far to good use, learn new things, and do our utmost to overcome any difficulties as a team and make a high ranking finish.”
■ Mechanic: Takumi Kikuchi, Hiroshima Hino Motors
“I am proud to be able to take on the challenge of working as a mechanic on the Dakar Rally team. This has been a goal of mine for a long time. I will keep up the fight with humility so that my teammates can have confidence in me. Although we are going to be working in a harsh setting, I am committed to fully support the team with accurate judgment calls and precise maintenance, no matter what kind of trouble we face.”