Land Rover announced their trio of navigators for the 2026 Dakar Rally on Wednesday. It’s familiar company for Rokas Baciuška and Sara Price as they respectively reunite with Oriol Vidal and Sean Berriman, while Stéphane Peterhansel will have a new co-driver in Michaël Metge.

Like his new driver, Metge has experience at Dakar on two and four wheels. He began his career on a bike, scoring a stage win in 2019, before switching to navigating in 2022. He worked with Jérôme de Sadeleer, Pau Navarro, and Yasir Seaidan in the SSV class. 2024 was a renaissance year for Metge as he and de Sadeleer finished second in class at Dakar, then won the World Rally-Raid Championship with Seaidan. Metge and Seaidan finished 23rd in Challenger at this year’s Dakar.

Peterhansel usually worked with Édouard Boulanger, who is now the navigator for Nasser Al-Attiyah. The 14-time Dakar winner did not take part in 2025 as he instead opted for the Africa Eco Race.

“Driving alongside Stéphane as part of the highly-anticipated Defender Rally team is a true career highlight,” Metge commented. “An icon like Defender joining the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship is a monumental moment for off-road racing and I can’t wait to return to Dakar Rally and make my mark.”

Vidal and Baciuška have worked together since 2022, but the former has been out for much of 2025 due to a back injury he sustained in the 2024 Dakar. He continued to race with the injury before missing the final two rounds of the W2RC, costing him a chance at the Challenger navigators’ title.

Baciuška recruited Eryk Goczał’s co-driver Oriol Mena for the 2025 Dakar, where he finished 11th.

“I’m thrilled to be joining forces with Rokas once again, supporting him in his Stock category debut for this unbelievable motorsport event,” Vidal stated. “Defender is iconic, so I’m honored to be part of the first Defender Rally manufacturer team, to prove Defender’s capabilities in the Dakar Rally. With Defender’s backing, we’re ready to push ourselves and the D7X-R to the max.”

Fellow Americans, Berriman and Price finished 27th in SSV at the 2025 Dakar; they won three stages but fell out of contention due to mechanical issues. Berriman began his Dakar career as an assistance truck mechanic before taking over navigating duties on an emergency basis in 2015. After a few years as the co-driver for Mathias Behringer’s truck, he teamed up with Casey Currie in 2020 and won the T4 class.

Price will head to her third Dakar in 2026 after debuting in 2024. Unlike Peterhansel and Baciuška, Price will not race the full W2RC after Dakar.

“It’s a privilege to be competing at Dakar 2026 and to tackle the dunes again with my 2025 driver Sara Price,” Berriman offered. “I’m proud to be representing such an iconic, unstoppable brand in its first Dakar entry, too. 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.”

Land Rover also announced Alpinestars as their official driver apparel supplier.

“Defender Rally is proud to partner with Alpinestars to support us in our pursuit for success as we push our cars to the extreme in the W2RC,” stated Land Rover’s Ryan Taylor. “With a strong reputation for providing uncompromising protection, performance and comfort, we know our drivers will be fully equipped to race. Likewise, it’s great to have such a robust team of co-drivers on board to support Sara, Stéphane, and Rokas. Now, with a full team set-up for Dakar and the 2026 World Rally-Raid Championship, Defender is ready to embrace the impossible and take on the toughest race in the world.”

Featured image credit: Land Rover