Jorge Brandão has passed away from injuries sustained in a crash in Friday’s Rallye du Maroc stage. He was 46 years old.

The accident occurred in the dunes roughly 214 kilometers into the stage. He was airlifted to a hospital in Erfoud, where he was pronounced dead at 1:55 PM.

Brandão was 37th overall in Rally2 entering Stage 5 with a best run of 37th in Stage 2. He had placed 38th in Thursday’s leg.

The Portuguese rider was slated to run the 2026 Dakar Rally on a bike. He made his Dakar debut in January as the navigator for Carlos Vento in SSV, where they ran as high as 11th but retired due to Vento having a medical emergency.

He retired from the 2024 Rallye du Maroc and finished 12th in Rally2 at the 2025 BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal. His experience also includes competing in the domestic CPTT and FIM Bajas World Cup whenever it comes to his home country or neighboring Spain, which included a podium among FIM riders at the Baja TT Dehesa Extremadura in May.

The FIM released the following statement:

The FIM is saddened to confirm the passing of Portuguese rider Jorge Brandao following a tragic accident on stage five of the Rally du Maroc earlier today, 17 October 2025.

Participating in the event for the second time, Jorge crashed in the dunes at Kilometre 214, and although he was attended to by the event medical team and then transferred to the hospital in Erfoud by air ambulance, he later succumbed to the injuries that he had sustained during the crash.

Born in Arouca, Portugal – Jorge was a very experienced rider in both enduro and cross-country rallies at national and international levels.

On behalf of the FIM Family, the Rallye du Maroc and the World Rally-Raid Championship we extend our deepest condolences to Jorge’s family and his many friends, he will be missed by the entire FIM family.

It is the second year in a row that the Rallye du Maroc was overshadowed by a fatal accident after Rally2 rider Frédéric Baudry was killed in the 2024 edition. The 2024 W2RC also saw Carles Falcón die from injuries at the Dakar Rally.

Jorge Brandão: November 15, 1978 – October 17, 2025

Featured image credit: Old Friends Rally Team