Jaguar Land Rover has announced that it is preparing to take part in one of the most famous and difficult rally races in the world, the Dakar Rally. The race has been held since 1979 with several breaks and changes of location, and from 2020 the race moved to Saudi Arabia & Middle East.

This will be the first time that the British brand has taken part in the Dakar Rally, and Jaguar Land Rover has chosen the Defender model. “Our first factory participation in the Dakar means that we are at the beginning of our journey. We are aware of how much we have to learn and achieve before we arrive at the start in 2026, but we are already well on our way and we are looking forward to the adventure,” said JLR’s head of motorsport James Barclay.

“Adventure is in the Defender brand’s DNA, so by partnering with Dakar we are embarking on the ultimate motoring adventure where competitors truly embrace the impossible. Our partnership begins in 2025, when Defender will showcase its capabilities and endurance as the official car of the event, but we also look forward to the entry of the Defender Dakar Team into the competition in 2026,” said Defender brand boss Mark Cameron.

Jaguar Land Rover will debut in 2026 and will be an official sponsor of the competition until 2028. This means that it will use its Defender models as support vehicles, which will be specially designed for the race.

Source: JLR