Who is Sara Price and her navigator Sean Berriman?

Sara Price’s story began in southern California, where, aged just eight-years-old, she started racing off-road bikes – spending her weekends making dust clouds and chasing sunsets. By her late teens she had 19 national motocross championships under her belt. Turning pro, she was soon an X-Games medallist, also in motocross, and from there her already high-flying career went supersonic. 

In 2019 – switching to four wheels – she became the first female to drive the notoriously brutal Baja 1000 solo for the entire 19-hour race, finishing second in the Trophy Truck class (while taking the overall championship) and earning official Ironwoman status. Think of it as the off-road racing equivalent of running an ultramarathon through a sandstorm. Alone. And mostly in the dark. 

She was the first ever woman to compete in Stadium Supertrucks. She’s an Extreme E race winner. A Hollywood stunt rider and driver. And in 2024 she made her Dakar Rally debut, becoming the first American woman and third woman ever to win a Dakar Rally stage in endless sands of Al-Ula. She finished fourth overall and won the title for best rookie. 

And now she’s joined Defender Rally, joining the all-star driver lineup for the 2026 Dakar. And – as preparations for the rally intensify – she’s an integral part of the intensive test programme for the Defender Dakar D7X-R, helping to shape its setup for the world’s toughest off-road race. 

“To join the works Defender team is a huge honour. Defender is an iconic vehicle with extreme capabilities, as well as a brand fuelled by purpose, so to drive for this British adventure brand at such a huge moment in its history is an amazing accomplishment for me.” 

Sitting beside Sara will be co-driver Sean Berriman, himself a Dakar champ as a co-driver in the SSV (side-by-side vehicle) class. And the two are no strangers, having already teamed up for Dakar at the 2025 event – forging a proper partnership over two gruelling weeks including timed stages up to 500 miles long… and with barely any sleep. 

And while Berriman might not be behind the steering wheel, ‘co-driver’ means more in Dakar than any other rally. Because as well as navigating over 6,000 miles of wilderness, keeping on course and finding the fastest lines, Berriman will be juggling timekeeping, strategy and ever-evolving conditions. He’s part mathematician, part psychologist and part survival specialist – keeping the Defender in the hunt for the finish line. 

“It’s a privilege to be competing at Dakar 2026 and to tackle the dunes again with Sara,” he says. “Defender’s ethos of embracing the impossible will help push us to maximise on the successes we achieved in 2025’s SSV category. The Stock category better be ready.”  

With Price’s impressive off-road racing creds and Berriman’s reputation as one of best co-drivers in the business, they’re surely in with a fighting chance of turning Defender’s Dakar debut into a winning one. That’s definitely the game plan, which is being masterminded by Ian James, Team Principal of Defender Rally and  Managing Director of JLR Motorsport. 

“We couldn’t be happier to have secured such a formidable talent in Sara” he says. “With trailblazing achievements to her name already, including Dakar stage wins, coupled with her determination and passion for the sport, she’s a perfect fit for Defender. She’s earned this opportunity”. 

For Sara, Dakar 2026 won’t just be another race; it’s a chance to write her name into Defender’s story, and into desert racing’s history books. The competition is fierce, the terrain unforgiving and the energy unstoppable – but then again, so is she. “I’m a born racer,” she says. And with that spirit, who would want to get in her way? 

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