Sara Price wins Dakar Rally Stage 2 as Defender takes Stock class 1-2-3

Sara Price leads Defender’s Dakar Rally Stock class sweep

Want to understand why the Dakar Rally is such an emotional rollercoaster for its competitors? Sara Price provides the perfect example. The Defender driver claimed Stage 2 of the 2026 off-road enduro, beating Rokas Baciuška and Stéphane Peterhansel as the team secured a Stock class 1-2-3. It was an immediate response after a long delay during the opening stage.

There was little ordinary about Monday morning’s journey. Stage 2 saw the Dakar convoy leave the Yanbu ‘bivouac’ base camp on the Red Sea coast and travel inland towards AlUla. The 400-kilometre timed test began on winding canyon routes before moving onto rocky trails climbing through the Hedjaz Mountains. Demonstrating the region’s varied terrain, crews then had to cross an off-piste ravine, accelerate over wide sandy plains and complete the stage across a sequence of dunes. Just another day at Dakar…

Although the route sounds daunting - and is certainly tougher in reality - Price is familiar with this part of Saudi Arabia. The American won the comparable Dakar section in the SSV buggy category in both 2024 and 2025. That experience of the local terrain, even when obscured by rivals’ dust, helped she and co-driver Sean Berriman put their Stage 1 disappointment behind them and lead Defender’s top-three lockout.

Defender Dakar D7X-R recovery begins immediately

After winning the Prologue, Price and Berriman had their Stage 1 run on Sunday halted for two hours when they struck a rock and damaged a rear arm. Such an incident could affect any of the purpose-built prototype machines fighting for overall honours in the T1+ class. It is an even greater concern for drivers contesting the Stock category, where the vehicles are drawn directly from the production line. For the Defender Dakar D7X-R, this includes showroom-specification gearbox, drivelines, bodywork and chassis. Its 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 also comes from the road-going Defender OCTA.

Price launched her comeback straight away, taking the lead after 70 kilometres. Peterhansel was only 5 seconds behind. A 14-time winner of the event, and known as ‘Mr Dakar’, he is more accustomed to an unobstructed view at the front than starting within the pack. Nevertheless, he moved into first at the 102-kilometre point and steadily opened a margin approaching 1.5 mins before Price regained the advantage.

Peterhansel dropped time towards the end of the stage, hindered by two punctures as well as restricted visibility. Baciuška and co-driver Oriol Vidal seized second place, while Price set the fastest time of 4 hours 57 mins 33 seconds.

“Today’s stage was a tough one for sure,” reckoned Price. “It really tested the vehicle. It was very rough, very stony and a lot of dust. There was little to no visibility a lot of the time. That, mentally, is very tough on drivers. We just put our heads down and kept to it. All the way to the end, we pushed and we ended up with the win. I did not expect it at all. Even cooler, all three Defenders 1-2-3. Super cool to see the finish line and all of us within only two minutes.”

Baciuška retains the overall Stock lead

Despite dealing with some nausea, Baciuška brought his Defender home only 82 seconds later. Put another way, the Lithuanian averaged just 0.2 seconds per kilometre slower than Price. More importantly, his Stage 1 victory means the 26-year-old remains 11 and a half minutes ahead of Akira Miura’s Toyota Land Cruiser in the overall Stock standings.

Baciuška’s verdict: “Today was quite a hard day. We had really a long way to go through the stones and then some sandy tracks. But no problems. The mechanics did a good job and the team got a 1-2-3 on Stage 2 – I think it’s amazing.”

Peterhansel and navigator Michaël Metge finished a further 4 seconds back, completing Defender’s perfect result. A little more quick maths reveals that the gap to Baciuška equated to only 0.01s over each of the 400 kilometres. Dakar’s most successful competitor is fourth in the combined rankings, ahead of Price.

“A nice stage but for the first time, we really started in the middle of the pack so a lot of dust,” said Peterhansel. “We overtook a few cars, a few cars overtook us [with the faster classes allowed to ask us to move over]. Usually for me, I always start in the front. But I’m very happy with the feeling of the car. We had two punctures, but when I saw how demanding the track is for the tyres, it’s really crazy where we pass through, so it’s acceptable. We are three cars close together and no problem in all three cars, so this is a good day.”

AlUla hosts Dakar Rally Stage 3

AlUla will once again offer a spectacular setting for Tuesday’s Stage 3, when the co-drivers will have the opportunity to truly earn their keep. Difficult rock formations, featureless open plains and numerous deceptive alternative tracks across the 422-kilometre timed section - alongside a 244-kilometre road section - will make accurate navigation and roadbook reading a serious test. Follow here for more updates.

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