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The iconic Defender brand is embarking on a thrilling new adventure, partnering with the world-famous Dakar Rally from 2025. Known as the ultimate off-road endurance race, the Dakar Rally provides a perfect proving ground for Defender’s unmatched durability and engineering. This multi-year partnership also paves the way for Defender’s first-ever works team entry, set to compete in the 2026 rally raid.
Defender: Official Car Partner of Dakar Rally 2025-2028
From 2025, Defender will serve as the official car partner of the Dakar Rally, solidifying its place as a global leader in rugged adventure vehicles. As part of the partnership, a fleet of Defenders will transport rally officials and VIP media throughout the event, ensuring smooth operations even in the harshest environments.
Additionally, six specially modified Defender recce vehicles will support Dakar’s organisers, scouting future routes and reinforcing Defender’s reputation for reliability in extreme conditions. The collaboration runs through 2028, ensuring a lasting presence for Defender in this legendary rally raid.
Defender Works Team to Compete in 2026 Dakar Rally
Defender’s ambitions go beyond supporting the rally. In 2026, the brand will field a Defender works team, marking its debut as a competitor in the Dakar Rally. This groundbreaking entry will demonstrate the extreme off-road capability of the Defender in the most challenging motorsport event on the planet.
Further details of the Defender rally raid program will be revealed during the 2025 Dakar Rally, offering a glimpse into how the brand plans to tackle this monumental challenge.
Leaders Speak on Defender’s Dakar Journey
Mark Cameron, Managing Director of Defender, highlighted the synergy between Defender’s heritage and Dakar’s spirit of adventure:
“Adventure is in the very DNA of the Defender brand, so we are inspired to partner with Dakar – the ultimate motorsport adventure – where competitors truly embrace the impossible.
Our partnership begins in 2025 when Defender will showcase its capability and durability as the official car of the event, but we are already looking to the future and entering a Defender Dakar works team from 2026. That Defender Dakar works programme will be led by James Barclay, JLR Motorsport Managing Director, and I know James and his team are inspired by the challenge that lays ahead.”
James Barclay, JLR Motorsport Managing Director, emphasised the significance of the Dakar Rally in motorsport and Defender’s commitment to success:
“Anyone who loves motorsport will have a passion for Dakar. It’s the Everest of motorsport and an event where success is dependent as much on human determination in the toughest of conditions as it is the ultimate test for vehicle and engineering capability. Bringing the world’s most capable and iconic 4×4 to the world’s most iconic rally-raid is a perfect fit.
Our first-ever factory entry into the Dakar means we are right at the beginning of our journey. We are conscious of how much we have to learn and achieve before taking the start in 2026, but we are already well under way and looking forward to the adventure. We will share more details of this exciting programme at the Dakar rally in 2025.”
Dakar Rally Welcomes Defender Partnership
David Castera, Director of the Dakar Rally, praised the collaboration as a meeting of like-minded pioneers:
“We are thrilled to welcome Defender as the new official car partner of the Dakar. It is an iconic brand, present on all continents, that shares our passion for adventure, performance, and innovation.
We are also excited that Defender will accompany us throughout the year, providing vehicles for the organising teams and for the route reconnaissance. Their reliability and robustness will help us improve our daily efficiency. Furthermore, starting in 2026, Defender will enter the competition as an official team. Together, we will shine a spotlight on Dakar on the international stage and offer a unique experience to all.”
Dakar 2025: The Next Frontier for Defender
The 2025 Dakar Rally, the 47th edition of the event, will once again test human and machine against the harshest terrains. Stretching from Bisha to Shubaytah, the course culminates in the Empty Quarter – a brutal three-day trial of endurance and grit. Defender vehicles will provide vital support throughout, ensuring rally operations run seamlessly.
As Defender gears up for its 2026 works team debut, this partnership solidifies its reputation as the pinnacle of off-road engineering and adventure. With an unmatched commitment to pushing boundaries, Defender and Dakar together promise to redefine the future of rally raid competition.
