Is Rokas Baciuška the rising star of motorsport?

At just 25, Rokas Baciuška has already achieved what most off-road racers spend a lifetime chasing. He’s the youngest Lithuanian ever to start the  Dakar Rally, the first driver in  FIA  history to win world titles in two separate categories, and one of the sport’s most exciting prospects. 

Rokas’s racing story began on Lithuania’s (presumably quite chilly) karting circuits, where he first pulled on the Nomex aged seven. Naturally he was one of the speediest kids on the grid, becoming the national champion in 2010. From there, he swapped asphalt for dirt, discovering rallycross and then off-road rally raid. 

He now joins  Defender Rally with a CV that reads like someone twice his age and the mindset of someone who’s barely begun. Fast, fearless and consistent – he’s the kind of driver who doesn’t just chase horizons, he reels them in and chews ’em up. 

His  Dakar debut came in 2022, when he finished third in the T4 class (think pumped-up, side-by-side buggies). That same year, he topped the  World Rally-Raid Championship after taking  four podiums  and a headline-grabbing win at the  Rallye du Maroc. A year later, he went one better at  Dakar with  second in T4, then switched to the faster  T3 class (even-more-pumped-up buggies)  for 2024, finishing  third. 

So it’s been a relentless rise – built on instinct and the composure you only get from thousands of miles spent hurtling across landscapes untouched by tarmac. And now, as he prepares to take on Dakar 2026 in the Defender Dakar  D7X R, he’s buzzing to get going. 

“I’m extremely excited to make my debut in the Stock category of the Dakar Rally, made even more significant by driving for Defender,” he says. “Defender is a brand synonymous with being unstoppable and embracing the impossible, which is why I’m so proud to be part of this programme.” 

Alongside him sits 32-year-old  Oriol Vidal, the Spanish-born co-driver – another desert warrior, who started in the wild world of quad racing before moving to rally raid and making his  Dakar debut in 2017. Together, the pair claimed consecutive world titles in 2023 and 2024 in those buggies – a partnership that thrived on trust and mutual grit. 

Now they join forces again in the Defender, both laser-focused on conquering the toughest motorsport event on Earth. Because in  Dakar, actually driving is only half the story. Navigation is just as important. A two-degree error can send you miles off course, and there’s no softly sat-nav voice telling you to make a U-turn when possible. That’s where Vidal comes in – the human compass keeping the Defender pointed in the right direction, even when the world outside looks like Mars. 

And the race itself? Two relentless weeks, 5,000 miles, 50-degree heat, and terrain that frays tyres, and tempers. Finishing Dakar is an achievement. Winning it? That’s an express pass to motorsport immortality – and a lifetime of free beer down the pub. With Rokas’s raw speed,  Oriol’s unflappable cool, and  Defender’s engineering backbone, someone had better start pulling those pints. 

As Ian James, Team Principal of Defender Rally and Managing Director of  JLR Motorsport, puts it: “Rokas Baciuška is one of the most exciting rally talents of his generation. With multiple world titles and Dakar podiums to his name, he’s shown the skill, determination and consistency it takes to succeed at the highest level. We’re thrilled to welcome him and Oriol”. 

In other words, they’re here to make a statement – and maybe, just maybe, make history while they’re at it. 

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