The three Land Rover teams competing in the World Rally Raid Championship (W2RC) have successfully completed the contest hosted in Portugal and Spain in March.

In fact, Land Rover’s three drivers and their co-pilots took the first, second and third spots in the Stock class in this second event of the 2026 W2RC, which will also see the team head to Argentina, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates before the year is out. 

Land Rover revealed that all three cars outperformed their expected pace, which is both a testament to the skill of the drivers and their co-pilots, as well as to the specifications of the vehicles they were driving.

Speaking after the Portugal rally event, team principal Ian James pointed to the “impeccable engineering, versatility and durability of the Defender”. He also noted that the Defender Dakar D7X-Rseven came close to the cars racing in the Ultimate class. 

The Land Rover drivers are all racing in modified versions of the production model the Defender OCTA, with the vehicles tackling some of the world’s most gruelling rally courses featuring much of the same technology and mechanics as the cars on the roads.

The Defender Dakar D7X-Rs all have the same transmission, driveline layout and body architecture as the OCTA models available to buy in Land Rover’s showrooms. They also feature the same 4.4-litre twin turbo V8 engine, which is certainly being put through its paces.

If seeing how well the Defender Dakar D7X-Rs are performing has got you itching to get behind the wheel for some off-road driving in your own Land Rover, make sure that you’re ready to go with the best possible tech under your bonnet.

Looking for a Land Rover V8 engine for sale? Take a look at what we have available to ensure that you have all the power you need when you take your vehicle on off-roading adventures.