Rallye du Maroc marks the end of Defender Rally’s 2026 rally-raid season, with Stéphane Peterhansel and Mika Metge also clinching the win in this rally
At Rallye du Maroc, the final race of Defender Rally's debut season, Stéphane Peterhansel and Mika Metge (#500) placed first in the Stock class with an overall time of 20:53:52. In second, 56 minutes slower, was Yasir Seaidan and Jean-Michel Polato (#505) of Team Land Cruiser Toyota Auto Body, followed by Baciuška and Vidal (#502). Sara Price and Sean Berriman (#504) placed fourth. The endurance of both crews and cars was put to the test in Morocco, with long stages covering a total of 2,458km and consisting of rocky tracks, fast sand sections and Saharan dunes, providing a fitting, iconic conclusion to Defenders' debut W2RC campaign.

These results mean that Defender Rally has also secured the W2RC Stock Manufacturers' Championship with 507 points. Defender Rally won the Stock class at the iconic 2026 Dakar Rally, bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal, Desafío Ruta 40 in Argentina and now at Rallye du Maroc. The 2026 campaign marks the first year of Defender Rally's three-year W2RC programme, with the team entering the Stock class to demonstrate the endurance, capability and durability of Defender in the world's most challenging off-road terrain.

At the heart of the campaign has been the Defender D7X-R, Defender Rally's competition car derived from the most powerful production Defender, OCTA. Defender D7X-R has been modified to meet the unique, brutal demands of W2RC terrain, adhering to the updated FIA Stock class regulations.

The Defender D7X-R combines the production vehicle's 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 engine and eight-speed automotive transmission with critical competition-specific development. The car features bespoke suspension engineered for off-road stages, increased ground clearance and wider track, together with enhanced cooling and underbody protection to withstand the prolonged demands of rally-raid. Its debut season has provided the ultimate proving ground for Defender’s capability and acted as an extensive test of what it can achieve, with the vehicle tackling long competitive stages and aggressive, varied terrain.

Overall, Baciuška and navigator Vidal secured the Stock Drivers' and Co-Drivers' Championship win with 233 points each, gained from the duo’s remarkable win of the 2026 Dakar Rally in January, scoring 50 points, and later placing second in the bp Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal and Desafío Ruta 40, Argentina, plus third in this weeks’ Rallye du Maroc. For Baciuška and Vidal, the championship title is the culmination of consistency and tactical driving, with precise navigation from Vidal playing a critical role throughout. This marks Baciuška's fourth Rally-Raid Championship title, having achieved victory in SSV in 2022 and 2023, and Challenger in 2024.

In second place of the Championship, Peterhansel and Metge completed the season with 220 points respectively. ‘Mr Dakar’, Stéphane Peterhansel, won Rounds 2-4 of the W2RC, but a fourth-place finish at the Dakar Rally meant they fell short of points for the championship win.

Price and Berriman finished the W2RC in third position. Price scored 194 points in the 2026 W2RC, and Berriman 157, having not competed at Desafío Ruta 40, Argentina, in May.

Defender Rally will now focus attention on preparing for the 2027 World Rally-Raid Championship season, starting with the Dakar Rally on 1st January 2027.