How Defender won every stage on its Dakar Rally debut

Defender’s dominant run on the 2026 Dakar Rally will be best remembered for three things. One, the brand winning its class at the very first attempt. Two, young driver Rokas Baciuška establishing himself on the world stage. And three, the rise of the Stock car category. 

For a brand so associated with go-anywhere 4x4s, it’s hard to believe that this year marked Defender’s official debut in the iconic, two-week off-road enduro. In fact, an entry into the 48^th Dakar was its first factory motorsport effort of any kind. Talk about in at the deep end.

You definitely don’t turn up and make the Dakar look easy. But Defender gave it a good go. The team won every leg (the Prologue qualifying heat plus 13 stages) in Saudi Arabia between the 3^rd and 17^th of January to bag the spoils in the Stock class for production-based vehicles. That included no fewer than 10 podium lockouts. The incredible charge was led by 26-year-old Baciuška, who headed the combined times from Stage 1 to the finish line to triumph by a colossal four hours. Team-mate Sara Price completing a 1-2 only made things better.

“To see the three Defenders come over the line together, it's the culmination of an incredible team effort,” summed up Defender Managing Director Mark Cameron. “To see us win it in our first race has made history, and to also come second in such style. The team spirit has just been incredible. They're just so proud.”

Long before arriving at the start line in Yanbu on the Red Sea coastline, Defender had to decide what its maiden Dakar voyage would look like. One option would have been to enter the T1+ category. This is the rough-stuff equivalent of Formula One. The class is home to bespoke prototype silhouette racers built around a spaceframe chassis. They share almost nothing in common with anything wearing a numberplate. 

That’s why Defender opted for the new Stock division, reserved for showroom-spec machinery you can actually go out and buy. The Defender Dakar D7X-R uses a gearbox, drivelines, chassis and bodywork lifted right from the Nitra production line in Slovakia. Even the 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 comes direct from the Defender OCTA. The only real concessions to rally-raiding are some flared arches, a bit more cooling, long-range fuel tanks, beefed up suspension and the required safety gear. 

Given Defender’s newcomer status, the target for the 2026 Dakar was straightforward: just make it to the finish 8,000 kilometres later. Forget about beating the rival Toyota Land Cruisers and Nissan Patrols to begin with. The goalposts didn’t move when Extreme E event winner Price topped the short Prologue on day one. The American and her co-driver Sean Berriman were quickest on the 23-kilometre stint in Yanbu, letting them pick where to line up in the running order for the first proper stage 24 hours later. That promising start was underlined by team-mates Peterhansel and Baciuška finishing second and third. 

The reason for Defender’s modest target became clear the next day. The unforgiving Dakar took note of Price’s early speed and decided to deal her a broken rear suspension arm on Stage 1. That cost two hours while she waited for a support truck to arrive and help with repairs. Likewise, Peterhansel was straining every sinew as a power steering issue brought about an unplanned upper body workout. Fortunately, team-mate Baciuška enjoyed a less arduous outing. He claimed top spot on the 305-kilometre course to grab the overnight lead in the Stock class. Little did anybody know at the time, that was something he would hold on to.

Price embodied the true spirit of the Dakar the next day. The X-Games medallist bounced back immediately to take Stage 2 honours, when the route headed inland to ancient AlUla. She set the pace on the 400-kilometre timed section to head a Defender 1-2-3. So, with a win apiece already for Baciuška and Price, it was Peterhansel’s turn to get in on the act. 

Since Peterhansel has accomplished so much in his glittering career, it’s pretty remarkable that he can still break new ground. The 60-year-old more than deserves his ‘Mr Dakar’ nickname, thanks to 14 victories in the event – the first six on a motorbike. He’s entered the Dakar 36 times and, even before starting the 2026 edition, had racked up some 83 stage wins. Yet, on Tuesday the 6^th of January, he achieved something he’d never done before by taking his first-ever Stock class success. He and navigator Michaël Metge ended Stage 3 more than a minute ahead of Baciuška, as Price banked another podium lockout in third. 

Any celebrations would have to wait, though, because next up was the first of two 48-hour ‘Marathon Stages’. After a two-year absence, this part of the Dakar format was back by popular demand. Rather than the regular arrangement for competitors (reuniting with the rest of their team at a sprawling base camp and the cars being checked over by mechanics), they were left to their own devices. So, after Peterhansel ran quickest (even having ended up on the D7X-R’s side) on Stage 4, the crews had to carry out any repairs alone before pitching a tent, eating military rations and setting off again early the next day. 

A late night for Baciuška and co-driver Oriol Vidal was the result of changing a right-rear knuckle. But their top work with the spanners paid off handsomely. The pair won the second leg of week one’s Marathon en route to Ha’il. While the Defender duo had earned the luxury of a shower, the Dakar organising body (the ASO) was never going to let things become too comfortable. Naturally, that meant the longest day on the entire schedule laid ahead. 

Stage 6 moved the convoy through the Qassim region right in the heart of country to the capital city of Riyadh. A 331-kilometre competitive stretch was bookended by a colossal 589 kilometres of road section for an exhausting total of 920 kilometres. In the final action before a much-deserved rest day, Price led from start to finish to cap off part one of Defender’s phenomenal charge. Baciuška and Peterhansel made sure of a fifth podium clean sweep

At the halfway point, two wins, three second places and one P3 result steered Baciuška to a 45-minute advantage in the combined Stock class times. Peterhansel sat second and Price, following her Stage 1 hold up, was fourth behind the lead Toyota of Ronald Basso. While the drivers and navigators enjoyed the break, mechanics were racing to strip, inspect and rebuild the three Defenders in time for the seven stages and 4,000 kilometres still to run.

Any fears that the rest day might interrupt the team’s momentum were quickly allayed. Despite taking a wrong turn, Peterhansel squeaked a 21-second Stage 7 triumph over Baciuška. Price brushed aside a heavy front impact and knocking off a wing mirror against a tree to chalk the latest 1-2-3. Then it was headfirst into the valley region of Wadi ad-Dawasir, which returned to the formidable Dakar route for the first time since 2022.

It was from this point that Baciuška made it known that he no longer wanted to be seen as rally-raid’s up-and-comer. Consider him a bona fide star. He and Vidal went from leading the overall Stock times to dominating them. Stage 8 marked the start of four-straight wins for the Lithuanian as a 45-minute cushion grew to a titanic four hours. 

Of course, this being the Dakar, it was far from plain sailing for Defender. The start of week two saw Peterhansel’s hopes of a class podium dashed. With 200 of the 483 kilometres to go on Stage 8, a snapped alternator belt forced him to stop. Waiting to be recovered cost 12 hours. The damage didn’t stop there. For retiring from the course, he was handed a 24-hour penalty to drop to fourth overall. One crumb of comfort was Price shooting up to P2 in the standings, following two podiums in as many days to put those Stage 1 woes well behind.

Baciuška’s white-hot form included taking Stages 9 and 10, which made up the second gruelling Marathon test. He headed Price by half an hour in part one of the overnighter and then by 22 minutes through the soft sandy dune fields of day two – as a recovering Peterhansel snared P3 in the latest Defender podium lockout. Completing a great game of Connect 4, Baciuška added Stage 11 to his tally. That said, the path from Bisha to Al Henakiyah was a much closer contest. He pipped Peterhansel by a slender 49 seconds. 

The penultimate day returned the convoy back to Yanbu. The sight of the ‘bivouac’ base camp where it all started wasn’t a desert mirage. The finish line really was rolling into view. But before anyone could think about adding a prestigious Dakar trophy to their cabinet, Stage 12 offered up a 311-kilometre timed course blended with a 409-kilometre road section. 

Keeping in mind that original goal to just make it to the end of the rally, the three Defender drivers opted for some formation flying. They stuck together on the route. Peterhansel was loaded with spare parts in case his team-mates encountered any late trouble. After several swaps for first place, Price emerged victorious from a nip-and-tuck tussle with Peterhansel as Baciuška slotted into third. 

So, all that remained was Stage 13. Unlucky for some? Well, not for Defender. This short 105-kilometre timed burst was no easy-going afterthought. It picked its way through the middle of rocky valleys and soft lagoons before finishing quite literally at the foot of the event podium. No one would have blamed Baciuška for taking it easy, tiptoeing his way around any obstacle that could potentially jeopardise his shot at the Stock class honours.

Not a chance. Fifty-six minutes after starting the route, he’d wrapped up his seventh stage success. Arriving to the entire Defender camp cheering at the finish line, Baciuška achieved the unthinkable. He upheld the brand’s 100% winning record to cement Stock class victory. Not a bad way to kick-off the new year. 

“Dreams come true!” he said. “Full credit goes to the Defender team. For the first year, it’s amazing. The mechanics did a great job. Without them, we would not have made it to the finish. What they do is unbelievable work. They work until 3AM trying to prepare the car for the next stage. Thanks to them and the engineers – all the team. It’s great.”

On both two and four wheels, Peterhansel has now contested the Dakar with nine different manufacturers. His 2026 pursuit with Defender, even if it didn’t return a top three result, will live long in the memory. He added: “It was a Dakar with all the emotions. Sometimes it was up, sometimes down. But at the end, we won the Stock category. Rokas finished first, Sara second. For us, it was a little bit more complicated. But what I keep in my mind is that it was a nice adventure with a super good team, super good team spirit. 

“All the members of the team – the mechanics, the staff, the crews, the drivers, the co-drivers – we were really close together. Not exactly the result I expect for me but, at the end, I’m super happy to do it because it was a really nice Dakar.”

Seven stage wins for Baciuška, three for Price, three for Peterhansel – Defender’s Dakar debut certainly earns a place in the history books. But taking the crown again will be an even tougher task. See, the Stock class itself was a success story. So, expect a load more brands to turn up next year with their road-going racers to try and take the prize.

Before then, it’s time for the glory to start sinking in. Ahead of boarding the plane home Ian James, Team Principal of Defender, said: “Honestly, I couldn’t be more proud of the entire team. Not only the fact that we've won Dakar in the way that we have, but the manner in which everybody's pulled together and worked so hard throughout has been simply outstanding. 

“A huge congratulations, of course, to Rokas and Oriol in particular, but to every member of the team. A huge thank you for the efforts in getting us to this point, and long may it continue.” 

And it’ll continue soon. At the end of March in Portugal, in fact. That’s because Defender will contest the rest of the 2026 World Rally-Raid Championship season as part of a three-year programme. Handy, then, that’s it is off to such a strong start.

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