Ford is preparing for its most ambitious Dakar Rally campaign to date, marking a pivotal moment for the automaker’s global motorsports strategy as it competes under the Ford Racing banner for the first time.
The 2026 Dakar Rally, running January 3–17, will see Ford field its largest and most comprehensive Ford Raptor program yet, underscoring a renewed emphasis on race-to-road integration and execution at the highest level of off-road competition. Long regarded as the ultimate proving ground for durability, speed, and teamwork, Dakar’s unforgiving terrain and two-week endurance format leave little margin for error—making it a defining test for both teams and machinery.
Ford Racing Chases Dakar Glory
Ford Racing represents more than a rebranding of the company’s competitive efforts. It is a fully integrated operation designed to connect motorsports directly with engineering, product development, customer experience, and brand strategy. Lessons learned in competition are now intentionally and rapidly transferred into production vehicles, tightening the feedback loop between racing and the showroom.
Dakar is a central pillar of that approach. In 2026, Ford will campaign four factory-backed Ford Racing Raptor T1+ entries, joined by four additional privateer Raptors competing on the same core platform. All factory entries will be driven by the same team that competed in 2025, providing continuity and hard-earned experience.
The factory drivers will be Carlos Sainz, Nani Roma, Matthias Ekstrom and Mitch Guthrie Jr. all in the latest Ford Raptor T1+ updated truck. For the 4 private entries, the drivers will be Martin Prokop, Dennis Krotov, Jourdan Serderidis and Romain Dumas all taking on Dakar in the previous generation Ford Raptor T1+.
Expanding the Global Raptor Name
The inclusion of privateer teams is a deliberate strategy to grow the Raptor name worldwide. By sharing technology, data, and durability insights across customer teams running identical hardware in extreme conditions, Ford aims to accelerate development while reinforcing the credibility of the Raptor platform at every competitive level.
That depth, Ford Racing’s Mark Rushbrook Global Director, says, strengthens the overall program and sharpens its ability to adapt quickly to the demands of Dakar.
Evolution of the Raptor T1+
The Ford Raptor T1+ is the most advanced expression yet of the brand’s desert racing experience. The latest iteration is lighter and more aerodynamically efficient, with major gains in visibility, vehicle control, suspension performance, cockpit access, and long-term durability. Each improvement is rooted in real-world competition data and stage-by-stage analysis rather than simulation.
Key technical partners—including M-Sport, FOX, Method Race Wheels, and Optima Batteries—remain integral to the program’s evolution. Technologies and components that survive Dakar’s extremes are expected to influence future Ford off-road production vehicles.
Racing as a Business—and a Laboratory
Ford Racing is also positioned as a growing global business. The company points to its Mustang programs—spanning GT3, GT4, Dark Horse R, and one-make series—as proof that effective race-to-road integration can improve production vehicles while creating a profitable performance ecosystem. That same philosophy now extends fully to Raptor and Ford’s broader off-road portfolio.
The company says it learned from its prior years at the race and the 2026 campaign is all about execution. This 2026 campaign is the strongest Dakar effort Ford has ever mounted and a defining moment for Ford Racing as a global performance enterprise.
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