The Defender OCTA Will Tackle The Dakar In 2026

Earlier this month, Land Rover announced it was going to be entering a near-standard Defender in the 2026 edition of the Dakar Rally. We suspected it might be the new Defender OCTA, a BMW V8-powered beast with tricksy cross-linked suspension designed for the express purpose of going extremely quickly over surfaces you really shouldn’t try to drive extremely quickly over. And would you look at that – we were right.

From next year, Defender – now a sub-brand of its own – is going to be launching a three-car effort in the ‘Stock’ class which, as its name suggests, is for cars that are pretty much showroom-ready. Formerly known as T2, the only major modifications made to cars in this class are the basic safety features required by the FIA – things like a roll cage and fire suppression system.

The idea is that, rather than building a bespoke rally raid prototype that serves more to get eyes on the brand than anything else, entering a car that people can actually buy serves to prove how capable it is. Currently, Toyota enters the class with a pair of Land Cruisers in addition to its purpose-built Hiluxes that compete in the top category - one of which won overall in 2025.

We don’t have much more info on the Defender effort – only that it’ll begin in 2026 and last for an initial three seasons, not just in the Dakar but the wider World Rally Raid Championship (W2RC), which encompasses similar-format events across the globe.

The OCTA, based on the four-door Defender 110, borrows BMW’s 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, making 626bhp and 553lb ft of torque. Higher and wider than any other Defender, its party piece is its ‘6D Dynamics’ suspension which hydraulically connects all four corners of the car to keep the OCTA’s body level as it hammers across the desert floor.

The road car, with prices kicking off at £145,300, will start landing with customers later in 2025, ahead of the closely related competition version taking on the Dakar next January.